Dragon Quest V: Ace's Journey
by Lord Genesis Shadow
Summary: The story of Pankraz's son, in a different way. This is Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride, from the perspective of Pankraz's son Milliardo, aka Ace. Follow his story from Crocodilopolis all the way to the end. Chapter eleven is up.
1. Breaking free

**Hello faithful viewers, I figured it was time for a new fic, so here we have my version of Dragon Quest V. Dragon Quest V: Ace's Journey. I'll be putting Gallade's Arm on hold for a long time, so I want to put something new up. Mostly I'm doing this so I can see how well I'm doing when writing from the perspective of the main character.**

**Now for the part you all knew was coming, the part I knew was coming, and the part that my laptop knew was coming…**

**Disclaimer: I, Lord Genesis Shadow, do not own the Dragon Quest Series. That is reserved for Square Enix.  
…**

I stared up at the ceiling of the cell they called a room for a few minutes before I stood up. It was morning, and we'd soon be starting our 'work'. Ten years went by painfully slow, but I never gave up my resolve. The only thing I had were the clothes they gave me, which were stained with years of sweat and dirt from all of the hard work I did every single day. Moving rocks, carrying bags of who knows what, picking away at rock walls with a pickaxe, and even running inside a giant wheel to pull up some kind of equipment on a rope, every single day was a new adventure in pain and hard work. But, with all of that work, my muscles grew stronger, and even though we barely had any food, it kept my strength up. One thing they never took as well, aside from my spirit, was my purple cloth turban. They said it was to keep the sweat out of my eyes, but I liked to use it for something else. That day, they'd probably put me on rope detail, which meant I'd get a sharp knife to cut some rope. Maybe I could hide it in my turban, or even if I can't I can always use a pickaxe if we get into a fight. And the slave drivers had whips. If I could beat just one, I could take his whip and give them a taste of their own medicine. Ten years of being whipped, I planned some big payback when I'd get the chance. Or, at least that was what I'd hoped.

I thought about my features. I had seen my reflection at times, and I thought I'd matured a lot since I'd started my life as a slave. I had brown eyes and hair, covered by my turban, which my father had given me as a child along with a purple cloak, which was now somewhere else. I used to have a stick I'd walk around with, but that had been broken by some strange creature called Ladja. I hated that man. He'd knocked me and Harry out, along with my pet Sabrecat Saber. I don't know what happened to Saber, but I prayed that he was alright. I had grown from a tiny boy into a fairly tall young man, standing at about five foot seven. I was well muscled thanks to all the years of incredibly difficult work, but that would only serve to help me when I found a decent weapon.

An old acquaintance of mine, Harry, who was once the prince of Coburg, was with me. I looked over to him as he slept on his blanket. He reminded me that I wasn't alone here in my wish to escape. He and I tried many things when we first arrived, but we were just kids, so we were unable to do anything useful. The only good thing was that I still had my magic to work with. Harry barely had anything like that, only a few bits of knowledge. I once more looked over his features. He was my only friend, my best friend here, and we knew that anything we did, we did together. His green hair always intrigued me, and he looked a lot different than when we were kids. He was taller, about five foot nine inches if I had to guess, and he looked to weigh barely one hundred and twenty pounds. He had managed to sneak a knife when nobody was looking, and he planned to use it when he got a chance to help us escape the next time we tried.

He used to be a spoiled brat that treated very few people with respect, and that was true with me. He'd told me that I was to be his 'Lackey', but only because he felt like he wanted someone to boss around. I'd played along, since I figured we'd eventually become friends, and my only other friend back then was a girl named Bianca. As my thoughts turned to her, I began wondering how she was doing. We'd saved Saber from a couple of mean kids. That day we found them, we were told to defeat some ghosts in a tower. After we'd done that, we were given this beautiful gold orb by the ghosts. We had to defeat some monster, but we'd let him go because he and his monster friends just wanted a place to call their own after being kicked out of some place called Nadiria. She was about two years older than me, which would put her at eighteen years old now. That meant that I was sixteen now, so I wasn't yet a real adult.

"Hey Ace, what are you thinking about over there?" Harry asked. I looked over at him and shrugged. "Have another dream about bein' whipped?"

"No, I'm just thinking." I said.

"I hope you aren't coming up with another one of your escape plans." He said. I shrugged.

"Maybe I am." I said. It was our usual game. I'd act like I was the leader; something that he figured was for the best. After all, I was way stronger than he was, and I knew my magic well. "I'm almost back to full strength. How about you Harry?"

"You know, I think I can manage." He said. "Just let me know what's up, and I'll try to help out." He used to be the leader, coming up with the plans. But after three years, he began giving up. I kept going, so he decided that he'd follow my orders from then on. He used to be a prince, but now he figured I was a king compared to him since I wouldn't give in. He said that if I ever gave in, that's when he'd call it as well. As long as I had a spark of defiance, he'd follow my plans. "So, another day, another meal, right?" I nodded. I stretched as he sat up from his blanket.

"I think I'll take a walk." I said. "Get some more thinking done." I started walking when I saw the new girl, Maria. She seemed bothered. I walked up to her and she looked over. "Hey, welcome to the pit. Everybody here calls me Ace." I held out my right hand and she slowly reached out with hers. "You're, Maria, right?" She nodded.

"Yes." She said. "I spoke up for the slaves, and now I'm here with you all. I guess it shows how smart I am." I shrugged as she let go of my hand.

"Well, brains aren't required for this job." I said jokingly. "Look at me; I've been trying to escape for ten years." She looked at my arms and the many scars on them, as well as the ones on my legs and the one down my right eye. "If anyone here is smart, it'll be you." She smiled slightly. "Don't worry; at least we get three square meals a day, a place to sleep, and plenty of company." She nodded slowly as the door opened. It was one of the slave drivers, and I recognized him. He was the one that gave me the scar on my eye.

"Okay, get up; it's time to get to work." He called. He cracked the whip twice and everyone stood up and began filing toward the door.

"Don't worry, they may seem mean, but you get used to it." I said. She nodded as she walked past me. 'Oh no, another one that plans to give up all hope right away. We need more people if we're ever getting out of here.' I walked over to the door as the last of the others walked out.  
…

I grabbed my tool of the day, a pickaxe, just as I'd figured. The only problem was that they were listed by number, and only if one broke was it not counted, and then it was thrown away elsewhere. That meant that I couldn't take it back to the cell to hide it somewhere. I walked down the path toward the place I'd be working. My magical energy was fully recovered, as was my body. I'd come up with a plan and start it later. I walked further down the path and saw a lot of the others standing around and I heard two whips cracking repeatedly. I jogged down and saw Harry looking at something.

"What's going on Harry?" I asked. He turned to me. "Who's getting it this time?"

"That new girl, Maria." He said as he turned to the spectacle. I saw her on the ground, the whips striking her repeatedly, and I felt a surge of anger. "They're really getting into it this time. I've never seen them acting this vicious." I stepped forward, my plan now formed, but not for escape. "Ace, what are you doing?" I ran forward and I heard him behind me.

"I'm doing what my father would have done." I said. The two slave drivers looked at me as I spun the pickaxe in my right hand. I stepped up as he pointed at me. I assumed the stance my dad's friend Sancho taught me to use with an axe.

"You'd better step back if you don't want another whipping, turban boy." He said. Harry stood beside me, pulling out the knife he had stowed away.

"She's had enough; let her get some medical attention." I said.

"She got dirt on my shoes, and I won't let her off easy." He said. "She doesn't know how we do things around here yet."

"Well then, I guess you two won't be part of what goes on here." I said threateningly. He growled as I heard Harry groan.

"This is really going to hurt, isn't it?" He asked.

"Probably, but maybe this'll get these guys to lighten up." I said. I stepped forward and dodged a swing of the whip, and I heard Harry sidestep one as well. I swung the pick and missed by inches, but I'd caught my target's shirt sleeve. I pulled back and he stumbled slightly. I turned the pick in my hand and tossed it, but I missed completely, hitting only a rope behind the large wheel that held it in place. It didn't fall, but it tilted slightly. 'Come on Ace, you can do better than that. Sancho would be so sad that you missed that slave driver.' The slave driver swung his whip at me but I caught it in my right hand. 'Now we're getting somewhere. Payback time for all those whippings, though I'll probably end up getting the worst whipping yet thanks to this stunt.' I pulled on the whip and began tugging to get it from him. I saw Harry out of the corner of my eye. He was doing pretty well, though he looked like he was having a little trouble. There wasn't any blood, but he looked to have taken a few hits.

"What's going on here?" A guard called. I turned my head but did not let go of the rope. I recognized the guard. He was one of the nice ones, the one that got Harry and me some medicine when we'd really gotten a bad whipping for an escape plan a few years back. I let go of the rope, remembering that Maria was his sister. He'd told me the day before. "Explain yourselves, and explain why, why this girl is bleeding and on the ground, and furthermore explain why two slaves are fighting you."

"Sir, these two slaves attacked us for no reason whatsoever." One of them lied. "We were doing our job, teaching this girl not to be disrespectful, and they just attacked out of the blue with a pickaxe and a knife!"  
…

I stood at the side of the cell door. We'd been locked up for a few hours and Maria was getting medical attention for her wounds. Thankfully they had something really powerful that healed any wounds called Yggdrasil Dew. It came in a little bottle with a stopper. It was dew collected from leaves of an old tree, and a leaf of it was actually inside the bottle. The leaf would revive people from death, but letting it marinate in water for a few days would take that revival power and spread it through the water. It made it less potent, so that it wouldn't revive people from death, but it would fully cure any wound just by drinking it, fully restoring the life energy of the person, even if they were less than an inch from death.

"Well, I guess we've earned some time off." Harry said suddenly. I nodded. "Do you think that girl's going to be alright?"

"Yes." I said. "They'll give her that Yggdrasil Dew, and she'll be right as rain in a minute flat. It worked for us after all, didn't it?" He laughed. There was a sound of opening doors and I looked to see that our door was opening as well.

"What's going on?" Harry asked.

"I don't know." I replied. He stood up from the floor and walked over to me. "I say we check it out." I stepped forward and he followed, likely turning his back so that he could watch out for anything behind us. I saw the guard from before and Maria standing by another open door that lead to the barrels they used to send out any dead slaves. "What's going on here?" They turned to us.

"I'm letting you three escape." He said. "I've heard a frightful rumor that they're going to kill all of the slaves when they've finished this whole thing. I can't let them kill my dear sister."

"What's that got to do with us?" Harry asked.

"You two stood up for her, you protected her." He replied. "I want to know that all three of you are safe. I'll stay behind to help the other slaves when I can." He walked into the room as Maria followed. Harry and I walked forward and we saw a barrel tied off. "This is the barrel that your stuff got put in, all of it, from when you got here." I nodded slowly. My old cape and everything from my childhood was in that barrel, and it was a big barrel. "You know what they use these for right?" We all nodded grimly. "As terrible as it sounds, you three have to get in and ride out the tide and go somewhere safe. You have to take Maria somewhere she'll be safe." I nodded quickly, my old feelings of strength returning. Helping people was something I did all the time as a kid, and even as a slave I helped whenever I could. Harry nodded with me, since he was onboard anything I went with. "Come on, hurry. I'll cut you loose when you're all in, but you need to hurry." We all nodded as I stepped up to the barrel, opening it. Harry walked over and climbed in as I gestured to Maria.

"I, I don't know." She said. She turned to her brother. "What if they find out what you've done?"

"Then I'll have paid for my past mistakes." He said. "And I'll be able to watch over you from Heaven Maria, but you have to be safe, and you must be strong, for both of us." She nodded and hugged him. It reminded me of how close I was to my father, Pankraz. "Now go, please, before someone comes along." She nodded and I helped her into the barrel. "Before you go, what are your names?"

"My name is Milliardo, but everyone calls me Ace." I said. "Because I've always been lucky." I looked at the barrel as Harry stuck his head out for a moment.

"Come on, we've got to go." He said. He ducked back down and I smiled.

"And that's Harry, my old buddy from Coburg." I said. "Thanks, we'll pray for you." He nodded and I climbed in. He closed the lid and there was only darkness. He pushed the barrel into the water and I felt that we were moving.

"Um, thanks." Maria said. "I hope everything turns out alright."

"It will Maria, I promise." Harry said.

"Harry, that was my line." I said jokingly. "I help people feel better, you agree with everything I say and you go along with my plans."

"Hey, sometimes I want to know what it's like to be you." He said. "Speaking of, pass me that hat of yours, so I can complete the illusion." Maria giggled quietly as I scoffed.

"Get your own." I joked. "It took me a week to get this thing back to normal the last time you tried it on."

"Oh come on, it wasn't that bad." He jokingly argued.

"You lost the pin in the water." I said. "It took me six days to find it, and six hours to get it exactly the way I like it." They both laughed as I grabbed a bag. I started looking through it. "Okay, enough jokes for now, let's try to find which bag has our stuff." I felt a strange metal thing and I ran my fingers along it. "Okay, I've got a metal staff here, so this is at least part of my stuff."

"I've got something here that feels like a cape." He said. "I don't know what color it is though. Yours was purple, mine was red."

"I think I've found a length of chain." Maria said.

"Oh, that's mine." I said. "That's a chain whip." She passed it to me and I felt the familiar metal handle. "Thank the Goddess that those guys didn't have these back there. I've hit myself once with this thing, and it really hurts."

"Okay, I think I've found a pair of pants, but again, I don't know if they're mine or not." Harry said. "What kind of belt did you use as a kid Ace?"

"Rope." I replied simply. "I just tied it around my waist, and that held all right. My dad always said you could never have enough rope."

"Okay, then this is mine." He said. "This has a leather belt."

"Where did they put my dress?" Maria asked. I felt through another bag and felt something soft, like underwear, but it felt too soft to be what men wear. I blushed, thanking luck for the total darkness around us.

"Uh, I think it might be in this one." I said as I closed the bag. I held it out to her. "I found, something that doesn't feel like a man would wear. It might have been the dress, but it could have been something else."


	2. The journey begins

**Hello, welcome to chapter two of Dragon Quest V: Ace's Journey. I'm working hard on this one, because I'm a big fan of Dragon Quest. They always have such wonderful storylines and I can barely keep from getting emotionally involved. In such a case where I get emotionally involved with anything, I tend to get story ideas, and when I get such an idea I find it nearly impossible to stop thinking about it. Such is the case that became this fic. I love the game, and it gave me ideas.**

**Disclaimer: *Sigh* I, Lord Genesis Shadow, do not own Dragon Quest V, or any Dragon Quest, aside from a copy of most of the games, except for seven. I really want that one. I hope they remake that for the DS. Anyway, I don't own the rights. Square Enix does, so don't sue me. I don't have any money anyway so you'd just be wasting your time.  
…**

I slowly opened my eyes. I felt like I'd been asleep for a long time, far longer than I had wanted to be. A woman's face came into view, but she wore an outfit I recognized that I hadn't seen in ten years. She was a nun.

"You're finally awake." She said. I sat up slowly and noticed that I wore my purple cloak and my old outfit, though not my iron armor, iron shield, or iron helmet that I had bought in Faerie Lea all those years ago. I wondered if they would ever fit me again or if I'd have to sell them all and buy something new. "You've been out for five days now; we were starting to wonder if you'd ever wake up at all. How do you feel?" I put my right hand to my forehead and felt that my turban was still on my head.

"I'll be fine." I said. "What about my friends? Where are they?" I looked at her to see her giving me a kind smile.

"They're fine, and they hardly slept compared to you." She replied. "Your friend Harry slept for two days, and Maria only slept for one night." She closed her eyes. "You're as nice as they said, worrying for them over yourself." She stepped back as I stood up. My legs felt a bit stiff, but it wasn't bad. It'd take a few hours to get used to walking again, but at least I wasn't in the barrel. "This is the Heaven's Above Abbey. Your friends are no doubt waiting outside. Your friend Maria is actually joining us, and her baptism is today, in just a few minutes actually." I nodded as she walked over to the door and opened it.

"Thank you, for taking us in like this." I said. She turned and bowed slightly.

"It is the will of the Goddess that we take in all who are hurt and weary." She said. "It is our pleasure to follow Her divine guidance." She walked out and I took a stumbling step.

'Well, this is going to be inconvenient.' I thought. I spotted an oak staff by the bed. It had been mine as a child, but I had used it for a weapon to strike any monsters that attacked me and my friends. It brought back memories, and it was then that I noticed that all of my belongings were in a bag by the staff. My iron staff was there, the chain whip, and even a copper sword. I grabbed the bag and tied it off. It had several medicinal herbs, some antidote herbs, and a few bottles of holy water. My armor was there, as was my iron shield and iron helmet. I stepped over to it and removed my cloak and robe. I put on the iron armor and the helm, and I put my arm through the metal grip on the back of the shield. It felt good to have my old equipment on, and it still fit. I guess the nuns of the Abbey knew how to fix it and resize it. After all, some women joined the convents to get away from lives involving war, and some of those women knew about weapons and armor and how to fix and maintain such equipment. I put the iron staff on my back and the whip on my right hip. The sword was old and somewhat damaged, so I just put it in the scabbard, intent on selling it and the other stuff for later. It was then that I noticed a boomerang. It was just a toy from when I was a kid, but it was good for taking out flying monsters. 'Well, it saved me more than once. I suppose I can keep it as part of my travelling kit.' I put it in the bag on my hip for later. I pulled on my clothes and my cloak and walked out of the room, leaning on the staff to walk a little better. My legs would be stiff for some time. I spotted Harry and he was looking away. "Hey Harry, how are you holding up?" He turned to look at me with a smile.  
…

We walked together toward the nearby town of Fortuna, a casino town. Maria had given us a thousand gold coins for our journey, and one of the nuns had given me a hand carved wooden statue of the Goddess for luck. It wasn't much, but it felt nice to have it close by. The staff was now a welcome addition to helping me walk. It made me feel like a sage of old, and Harry said it made me look wise. We spotted a few monsters, but nothing we couldn't handle. There were a few Slimes and a Jailcat. They'd be easy pickings for my iron staff, and Harry had the bronze knife from when we were slaves.

"So, do you think we can handle those things Ace?" Harry asked. I noted a bit of nervousness in his voice.

"Yes, we can." I said. "I took on stronger monsters than that when I was six. They won't stand a chance." I put the oak staff in the ground a few inches and I pulled the iron staff from my back. I held it with my right hand and readied my bronze shield. "Just think of those slave drivers when you attack and you'll take them out in no time flat." I spun the staff and held the weighted end toward the monsters as the Jailcat ran at me. "You handle the Slimes; they're easy targets for beginners." He nodded and stepped around the cat as it jumped at me. I lowered the end and waited for a second. I raised the tip quickly, striking the striped cat in the jaw, lifting it into the air. I spun around, the tip still in the air, and dropped the heavy end on the body of the feline, smashing it into the ground. I saw Harry cast a Dazzle spell on the Slimes, making them see illusions, and from personal experience I knew that the illusions would be of multiple Harry's attacking them as if he had twins of himself. The Slimes began jumping at him, missing by great deals. He laughed but one hit him in the stomach, knocking him down. I ran over to him, dragging the heavy tip along the ground. I swung the heavy tip forward and knocked one of the Dazzled Slimes into the one on his stomach. They slid away as I kicked the other, knocking it out easily. I stepped over to my friend and helped him up. "One thing you need to know pal; never stop to gloat. As soon as you think you've got the fight in the bag, that's when you need to be the most careful." He nodded, rubbing his stomach. "Hurts don't it? I've had those little buggers hit me when I was a kid. It'll sting a bit, but it's no worse than getting punched." He nodded again.

"I should probably get some armor." He said. I nodded.

"Good thing Maria gave us that gold." I said. "That should really help out." He nodded. "So, let's head into town. Maybe we can find something besides armor that can help us." We started walking when one of the Slimes got up and shook. It slowly hopped up to us, but it didn't look like it meant any harm.

"Hey, what's he up to?" Harry asked.

"You guys are strong." The Slime said. "I'd like to goo with you guys." Harry and I exchanged confused looks but I looked down at the Slime. "I'm Goolia."

"Well, I suppose it can't hurt to have another companion." I said. Harry stared at Goolia as I knelt.

"And I'm a she by the way." Goolia said. I smiled and placed my hand on top of her, head I guess you could call it.

"I'm Milliardo." I said. "Everyone calls me Ace." She moved her slimy body into my hand like a cat would, but slime from a Slime never bothered me.

"I'm Harry." Harry said.  
…

We walked into town, and we probably couldn't have looked like a stranger group. I had on my clothes over my armor, but I still walked with the Oak staff, the iron staff resting on my back, a whip on one hip, and a sword on the other. Harry now wore a Wayfarer's outfit, and he had a knife on his left hip. Goolia followed me closely, just avoiding my feet. I heard whispers from various people but it didn't bother me. I looked around, mostly for the weapons and armor shops. I also wanted to hit up the item shop for some medicinal herbs. I knew a few healing spells, but it took concentration and magical energy, Mana, to use any spells at all. My strongest healing spell was called Midheal, which my father had taught me. The standard heal spell was incredibly simple, and many people could learn it. It would heal minor wounds, such as scratches or scrapes, and used repeatedly it could heal major wounds at the cost of time and effort. Midheal was just over twice as powerful, able to heal major wounds faster, and it used less energy than multiple regular healing spell. I also knew a spell called Whoosh, and it's more powerful form Swoosh. It was a basic wind spell that could do serious injuries to large groups at a time.

Harry knew a few spells. He knew Frizz, a basic fireball spell that did minor damage. Another spell he knew was useful, Bang. It was very useful, but it was something of a difficult spell to pull off. It took a few seconds of focusing before he could use it, using the word 'Bang' as the key that set it off. It created a minor set of explosions over a small area, but it was strong enough to take out several small monsters at once.

"So, where do we go first?" Harry asked. I looked to my right and saw the weapon shop. I pointed to it.

"Let's go there first." I said. "I need to offload this old sword, maybe my iron staff, and some other stuff I've got." He nodded. "Then we ask where the armor and item shops are, followed by the inn. Any other interesting places are a must visit, for information if nothing else."

"Then we should check the casino and the pub." He said. I looked at him for a moment. "What? The people at the pub are always in the know about rumors right? And guys at the casino would probably have a good rumor or two."

"Did you hear that from one of the guys back in hell?" I asked. He nodded.

"A couple of burly guys said that bars were great places to hear rumors." He said. "The casino's probably the same." I chuckled.

"Yeah, probably." I said.  
…

I sat on the chair at the bar while Harry collected information. Goolia sat on the bar beside me while the bartender stared at us. He walked over slowly as Goolia looked around with a smile.

"I like this place." She said. I nodded. "It's really goo for finding a drink."

"So, I take it that, uh, you two are thirsty?" The bartender asked.

"Actually, we're here catching up on events." I said. "A friend of mine is talking to the other patrons, and we're here to talk to you." Goolia nodded.

"Okay, what would you like to know?" He asked.

"Anything big that's happened over the past ten years." I said. "And not just here, we need to know about anything that's happened in Coburg, Whealbrook, and Roundbeck." He blinked. "My friend and I have been away for a long time, and we need to know what's happened around our old haunts."

"Well, I don't know what's happened around Coburg or Whealbrook." He said. "But Roundbeck has been pretty much been the same as always. Around here, pretty much the same. You'd do better joining your friend talking to the others."  
…

We rested in our individual beds at the inn, which cost us twenty gold coins in all. We had found a place that sold various odds and ends, and we had bought a horse named Dusty and a wagon to carry some of our extra equipment, providing that one day we had enough equipment to be considered extra. It had cost three hundred, and the inn cost us the last of our funds. Other than the cart, I had bought thirty medicinal herbs and four phials of holy water. By sprinkling it on the wagon it would repel wild monsters. By beating a lot of monsters, we earned a total of twelve hundred gold coins, and I had two thousand from when I was a kid. The items we sold brought us up to four thousand, and all of it went to armor and weapons.

I sold off a fur hood and bought an iron helmet and an iron cuirass for Harry. By selling my chain whip I was able to afford a chain sickle for Harry since he wanted to use it, and his knife brought in twenty five gold, which was what let us get the room in the end. He ran out of the in to sell the knife, which got the rest of the gold for the room, and we still had five coins left.

"Hey Ace?" Harry asked. I looked over at him. "That village you came from, Whealbrook? Do you think we should go take a look, maybe to see if that Sancho guy is still there?" I nodded.

"Yeah, he'll probably go nuts when he sees me though." I said. I chuckled. "He was a great guy, and he'd always call me his friend. In fact, that's what he called me. 'Hey Friend' he'd say whenever he talked to me." I looked at the ceiling. "He was a good cook too. He'd make this thing called a burrito, it was so good." I looked at Harry. "But if he offers you one, be careful with it. It's delicious, but it's spicy, and just between you and me, don't let him eat one. Unless you want to see Goolia hiding in the wagon whenever he's around from now until the day we die of old age." He laughed. "Hey, that's no joke. Those burritos are really gassy." I fanned the air in front of me. "Geeze, if Sancho gets a burrito in him and you'll want to be upwind of him for at least the next three hours." I faked a cough. "Oh, he nearly killed a monster one time after eating one, and that's no joke." He laughed as I closed my eyes and moved onto my back.

"Good night Ace." Harry said.

"Good night Harry." I said.

"Goo night guys." Goolia said.  
…

After three days traveling we had made it to my home of Whealbrook, and it shook me seriously when we entered it.

"Oh, oh sweet Goddess, this, this can't be." I said hoarsely.

"This, this is Whealbrook?" Harry asked. "This, is, it's just horrible. Who could have done such a thing?" I dropped to my knees, the staff falling to the ground. There were patches of purple gunk on the ground, poisonous no doubt, and only the church was intact. "This is just, this can't be possible." I put my hands on the ground and resisted the urge to vomit.

"Oh my gooness, this is bad." Goolia said. She moved close to me and looked around. "I hope there are some people still alive. We need to find out."

"I, I need to, I have to, collect, myself." I whispered. "You two, take a look around. I need a few minutes, to myself." Harry put his hand on my back as I tried to get the strength to stand.

"Take all the time you need buddy." He said. "I'll check out the church."

"Th, there's a, a shop, behind it, in a cave." I said. "Check that out too." I looked at Goolia. "To the east of the church, is this, house, without a roof. There was an old man there, who tended a raft. Can you find out if the raft is still there?" She nodded.

"What's so important about a raft?" Harry asked.

"My dad, Pankraz, used to take it into the cave every now and again." I said. "He was always doing something, but I never knew what. Maybe the answer is in the cave, as to why this happened." He nodded and they both walked, and slithered, away. 'Goddess, what happened here? Why would someone want to destroy Whealbrook? There was nothing of any value, and there weren't any people who would have done anything to anyone with this kind of power.' I stood up and looked toward my old house. 'Please, tell me Sancho wasn't here. Tell me that he left to Coburg, or Roundbeck, or somewhere other than here when this happened.' I grabbed the staff and walked up to the old inn. It was completely destroyed. I looked at the bridge and sighed. It was broken and lying in the riverbed. I walked down the path and went across a small bridge. Goolia was at the old man's house, and I walked by the church. Memories of my childhood flashed before my eyes, and I suddenly remembered a man in front of the church one day, when I'd met a fairy named Honey. She had taken me to Faerie Lea, and I had retrieved the Herald of Spring that brought the season into the world. I still couldn't place who the man was though, but when I'd talked to him, he reminded me of my dad. He'd spoken to me and he had asked me about the gold object I found at Uptaten Tower. I'd smiled at the fact he seemed to like it. I looked down at Saber before he handed it back to me. My dad and I left the next day, and I never saw the man again. I walked over to the ruins of my old house and looked at the damage that had been done to it. There was no sign of Sancho, and it left me both relieved and worried. 'At least he wasn't killed, or hurt. If somebody did attack him, I bet Sancho would have destroyed him.' I walked up to the rubble and I spotted something familiar. I walked up to a destroyed table and picked up a branch with pink blossoms on it. I felt a tear roll down my left cheek. "Honey. It's been a long time." I wiped my cheek and carefully put the branch in a large bag.  
…

We trudged through the cave. We had learned that soldiers of Coburg were the ones responsible for the damage to the town. The old man was alive, and he had adopted a kid that survived the carnage and was raising him. The old item shop was now an inn. We had earned four hundred gold coins defeating various monsters along the way. We were nearing the end, I hoped, and the answer would be there. We were in what looked like a room, and I saw a sword in the ground by a chest.

"Wow, that's a beautiful sword." Harry said. I walked up to the chest while Harry grabbed the hilt. "Whoa, I feel, weak when I touch it." He let go of it and I opened the chest. There was a letter, and nothing more inside. "What's that?" I picked it up and opened it and read it silently. "What's it say?"

"Dear Milliardo." I read. "If you're reading this letter, it must mean I'm no longer at your side. You probably know already, but the reason I've been travelling is to search for my beloved wife, Mada, who fell into the hands of evil. My wife, your mother, had some mysterious powers." I thought about it and lowered the letter. I looked at it and felt a pain in my heart. "I don't really understand it, but it seems these powers are coveted by those in the dark world of Nadiria. It is my belief that she was carried off there because of her powers. Dear Milliardo! You must continue my search for the legendary hero!" I looked at the sword for a moment before looking at the letter again. "It seems that the only one who can enter Nadiria and rescue Mada from the clutches of evil is he who can make use of the Zenithian Equipment: the legendary hero. I travelled all over the world and managed to locate the Zenithian Sword. But still I've been unable to locate the legendary hero. Milliardo, my son. You must gather the remaining pieces of the Zenithian Equipment, find the legendary hero, and save dear Mada!" I felt myself getting misty eyed at the words. "I have faith in you, son. I know you can do this." I lowered the letter and looked at the sword in the ground as Harry stared at me. "My dad took me around the world on a ship when I was a kid, and I never once knew he found this sword." I gestured the letter at it. "Not once, not one time did I even know that this was a sword. He kept it wrapped in a blanket, told me it was nothing and that I didn't need to worry about it. He told me we were just looking for my mom, but, but I never would have thought we were looking for a legendary hero too."

"So, so this sword, we need this to find the hero?" Harry asked. Goolia looked at the blade while I nodded and sat on the edge of the chest.

"My dad always told me that mom had just disappeared." I said. "He never once told me that she had been kidnapped. I, if only he'd told me about it." I looked at the letter, and my heart was in terrible pain. "I never even knew my mother. She, she just vanished." I waved the paper. "Right after I was born she was nowhere to be seen. That's what Sancho and my dad always told me. Two years I spent in Whealbrook before dad took me on that ship, and we went looking for my mother all over, for two whole years." I looked at the note, remembering my years on those ships. "Then, then when I was four, we spent a few weeks in Roundbeck, and I met this other kid, Bianca, and we became fast friends. She was six, and she treated me like I was as well, even when my dad treated me like I was two or three. Then we were gone again, back on a ship, searching the sea." I looked at Harry as he sat down by the sword, petting Goolia lightly. "We spent two years, during which he found, the sword." I gestured to it, still clutching the letter in the gesturing hand. "We came back and I found my first ever battle, against three Slimes. My only weapon was this, stick I'd picked up somewhere, made of cypress. I hit one Slime, and it kept coming, as did its friends, and that's when my dad showed up." I smiled. "He cut two of them in half as I clocked the last one, knocking it out. I had a few bruises, a cut, but it wasn't bad. Dad fixed me up with a simple healing spell, and he scolded me bad about going off on my own."


	3. The next step

**Hello faithful readers, and welcome to the third chapter of Dragon Quest V: Ace's Journey. When we last left Ace, Harry, and Goolia, they had arrived in Whealbrook to find it completely destroyed. Ace had just read the last letter his father Pankraz ever wrote. He found out that he needed to collect the Zenithian equipment and find the legendary hero. The biggest shock is that his mother is still alive, and only the hero of legend can lead him to her. What will our intrepid wanders do? Okay, enough with the cheesy raconteur* thing. If you've played the game, you know what happens, and if you didn't, I do follow the story, but with more personality. Mind, there will be some changes, but not many.**

**Disclaimer: You know, I'm getting the hang of this part. *Ahem* I, Lord Genesis Shadow, do hereby state that I just don't have the money to own the rights to Dragon Quest. Square Enix does, and they have the money to prove it. If I owned Dragon Quest, the spells would have better names, there would be more variety to enemies, and more weapons would have better effects.**

**Oh, and you'll notice the asterisk by raconteur. A raconteur is a storyteller or a narrator. This has been a lesson from Lord Genesis Shadow about words you may not have known. Now, go ahead and read this chapter. Enjoy.  
…**

"So, what do we do now?" Harry asked. I shrugged.

"I don't know." I said. "My dad would have known. But, all he's told us with this letter is that we need to find this legendary hero so we can find my mother." I looked at the letter and then at the sword in the ground. I pointed to the sword with the letter. "Wherever that hero is, we need to take that sword with us so that when we find him, we won't have to travel far to give it to him. And who knows, maybe we can use it somehow." Goolia looked at the sword as she moved around it.

"Well, how do we get it out of here?" She asked. "It makes people tired to touch it. Harry found that out." I nodded.

"We do what my dad did." I said. "We put it in something so we aren't directly touching it. We need a blanket or a long sack to put it in." Harry nodded and went for the tent bag while I put the letter in the envelope. "I'll pick it up, so you get the bag ready." They nodded as I put the envelope in my personal item bag. I stepped over it as Harry pulled out a thick canvas bag and opened it. I took the hilt in both hands and I felt the draining effect of it. I groaned loudly as I tugged at it. "Okay, here we go." I heaved and used every last ounce of strength I had and I managed to pull it free of the soft ground. I held it in front of me for a moment, as if ready to strike down a strong monster. But it was like lifting a piece of lead, and I felt weak when I held it. "Okay, get the bag over here, quick. I don't know how long I can hold it." Harry walked over and I put the sword in the canvas bag that was supposed to hold our tent and I let go of it.

"Well, that takes care of that." Harry said. I nodded and sat down on the grass of the cave floor. I was sweating. "You okay Ace?" I nodded.

"Yeah, I just need a few seconds to rest." I said. "It looks light as a longsword, but I've never lifted anything that felt that heavy before." He nodded. I sighed and put my arms on my knees as Goolia moved to my left side.

"We'll find the hero Milliardo." She said. "And I won't goo away no matter how bad it gets. You're my friend, and you're gooey to me." I smiled. "That's a compliment from a Slime by the way." I put my left hand on her head and rubbed her gently.  
…

I sat against the unbroken wall of the house that I'd lived in, well, stayed at when we weren't travelling, when I was a child. I snuck out of the inn so that I could do some remembering alone.

'Sancho, be alive my old friend.' I thought. 'I'll find you someday, so you can't die before then. Not before we can share a few of those old memories about dad.' I looked up at the clear sky. 'Please be okay Sancho. You'd know what dad would do, you really would.' I turned my head back to look at the house. There was a book on the ground I hadn't noticed, and it looked dry. I moved my right hand to it, since it was just close enough. I grabbed it and looked at the cover. It looked familiar. I opened it. 'Once upon a time.' The words struck me as more familiar than before. 'Wait, once upon a, this was the book Bianca tried to read to me when I was six. Heh, she, she never did get past that, saying it was too hard.' I laughed quietly for a moment, a tear running down my right cheek. 'Bianca, I hope you're okay.' That's when a thought hit me. 'Hey, Roundbeck isn't too far from here. Not even half a day's distance from here on foot. Yeah, that's where we go from here, Roundbeck, to see Bianca and to gather info on recent events.' I nodded. 'That's the plan. We go find my old childhood friend, and hope that she remembers me. If she doesn't, well, I hope she does.' I stood up and looked at the book in my hand. 'I'll keep this. She'll get a laugh out of this when she sees it.' I put it in my bag and walked back toward the inn. 'I wonder what she looks like now.' I smiled. 'Well, I'll find out when we get there.' I walked toward the inn, a bit of a better feeling in my heart. "Okay, at least now I know where we're going next."  
…

We walked into the town of Roundbeck, now with a heavier bag of gold and a bit more combat experience. Goolia was sitting on the wagon seat while I led Dusty to a hitching post. Harry and I wouldn't bring her into town since some people would probably freak out at seeing a monster in town. She was okay with it, saying that somebody needed to keep an eye on the wagon. I stopped just past the entrance and looked around with a smile.

"This is a nice little town." Harry said. I nodded. "It's really quiet, but, it's nice. I wouldn't mind staying here for a night or two." I nodded again.

"Yeah, I remember Roundbeck from when I was six." I said. "It hasn't changed a bit." I looked at the inn. "So, I guess we should check things out with the people, see what's been up since we've been on vacation." He laughed while we began walking. I was still walking with the staff, but I didn't need it. I'd just gotten used to it. "Why don't you check out the pub? Ask if anyone knows about the Legendary Hero, and be sure to ask the bartender." He nodded and looked around and I pointed toward it, to the west of the inn. "I went there once as a kid to check it out. It's a nice place." He started walking toward it as I looked at the inn. 'Ten years. It seems like such a long time, but I'm back.' I walked up to the door and opened it, expecting to see Bianca's mother, but there was a Dwarf at the desk. I walked in and he smiled.

"Hello, welcome, welcome to our inn." He said cheerfully. "How may I be of assistance?" I walked up to the desk, figuring I'd set up for a night's stay.

"Is Bianca or mister Whitey here?" I asked. He looked to be in thought for a moment.

"No, I haven't seen Whitey in, quite a long time to be honest." He said. "May I ask how you know him and his daughter?"

"I'm an old friend." I said. "I knew Bianca when we were kids, and we were friends ten years ago. I, had to leave, and I've been gone that long. I thought I'd come by to check in on her and maybe reminisce about the old days." He looked at the door behind him for a moment before looking back at me.

"I, I'm not quite sure how to say this then, since you were a friend of the family." He said slowly. "They moved away, when Whitey's wife, passed on." I stared for a moment as I remembered the woman that had brought Bianca to our home, and the few nights we spent at the inn when my dad had been sick with a cold he caught from the ever ill Whitey. She was so strong; I thought for sure that she'd outlive her husband. I lowered my head. "I'm sorry. They moved to another town, but I can't remember where."

"It's okay." I said quietly. "At least I know my friend is okay. That's a start, right?" I smiled slightly and he nodded. "So, I guess I'll take a room with two beds for, two nights, I suppose." He nodded as I pulled out the money.

"That'll be fifty gold then." He said. I nodded and grabbed the coins, laying them down and counting in my mind, putting them in stacks of five. "You know, if you stay both nights, we have a very special gift. A special, unique, grape scented Zizzwizz pillow." He pulled out a purple pillow from under the counter and held it out to me. "Go ahead, take a whiff and tell me that this pillow won't help lull you to sleep on those long nights while you're travelling around." I leaned forward and sniffed. I smiled and sniffed again, taking in the smell of grapes. He smiled as I leaned back, yawning slightly.

"Wow, you're right." I said. "I'm thinking that my buddy and I are going to stay both nights." He smiled wider.

"Well then, I've got news for you." He said. "Since you've got a travelling partner, you both get one. That's a little gift from me by the way, since you knew the old owner and his family." I smiled as he put the pillow away.  
…

I sat in the pew of the church, praying for Bianca's mother's soul. I found out she died only a few years into my being a slave. It hurt to think that I couldn't have been there for Bianca, to tell her how sorry I was for her loss. Now, I'd have to find her to tell her in person, and I'd tell her just how sorry I was that I couldn't have been with the girl that had been my only friend as a child.

'Goddess, please, help me find Bianca.' I prayed. 'Help me find my friend so I can tell her how sorry I am for not being there for her. Help me find her, so she can know that I'm still alive. Help me put things right between me and my childhood friend.' I looked up at the statue and saw the priest looking at me. I looked around and saw no signs of anyone else. He looked concerned and he walked over as I lowered my head again. I felt really bad that I couldn't be telling my best friend stories of stuff I'd done recently, about monsters I'd fought and I'm sure she would have liked to meet Harry and Goolia. 'Please, please Goddess, let my friend be okay as well. I miss her, and I want to know she's still alive and okay.' The priest sat down beside me and I looked at him. My staff was held in my left hand beside me, leaned against my shoulder.

"Are you okay my son?" He asked. "You seem very troubled, and you have been silent for a long time. It is getting very late, and it is already dark out." I looked at the window above the statue.

"I'm fine." I said quietly. "I'm just praying for a friend and her mother. I wasn't here when her mother died, and I feel terrible, even though there was no way I could have been here when it happened."

"Would you like to talk about it?" He asked. "It couldn't hurt to have someone to talk to." I looked at the seat ahead of me.

"I've seen some terrible things." I said. "I watched my father die before my eyes, and I was helpless to do anything about it, and then I was made a slave for the last ten years. I've other slaves hurt in a lot of ways, and I've been whipped more times than I could ever count." He nodded slowly, not showing any emotion. I knew he was concerned, but I figured he'd heard stuff like this before. It wouldn't surprise me. "A bit of luck let a couple of friends and I escape a couple of weeks ago, so now one of those friends and I, and a new friend I made a while ago, are looking for someone. I'm going to need all the help I can get." I looked at him, and I felt a bit better. He gave a small smile and looked to the statue.

"I pray that the Goddess will lend you a bit of help." He said. "I wish you the best of luck my child." I nodded as he stood up. "I will be here if you need anything."

"I'll just be another minute." I said. "I have one last person to pray for." He nodded and walked back to his post and started reading his scriptures. 'Goddess, I hope you let my father find peace now. Please, take care of Pankraz.' I stood up and looked to the priest. He nodded as I turned to walk away. I walked to the door and opened it. I turned and nodded to him and he waved as I walked out.  
…

The next day wasn't very eventful, but we'd found that the left front wagon wheel had broken, so we'd be another day. I stayed at the pub, mostly just passing the time while watching people. Harry went out to gather information. I sat at a corner table, at the corner in case somebody came looking for me or Harry. It wasn't likely, but the slavers knew we were gone by now. I didn't peg them as the types to give up on a trio of slaves that escaped all at once. I watched a man walk up to the bar but I noticed that the bartender wasn't there. I looked to my right as she walked up and set a glass of amber liquid in front of me.

"On the house." She said. I looked at her and remembered her as the girl who was at the bar when I was a kid. "So, where's your girlfriend?" I took the glass slowly and shrugged.

"I haven't seen her in ten years." I said.

"What happened?" She asked. "Have a little fight and break up?"

"Actually, my dad died, and I was made a slave." I said. "Happened about two weeks after I'd been here last." She gasped. "It's no big deal." I raised the glass and sniffed it. It was sweet. I took a small sip and lowered my hand. I looked at her. "Thanks." She nodded and gave a smile, but I knew it was forced.

"No problem." She said. "After all, you put those ghosts to rest in Uptaten. It's the least I can do." She winked and walked away as I looked at the drink. "Oh, and be careful with that. It's the local whiskey."

"Thanks again." I said. 'This one's for you dad. A drink for a fallen hero, far too long overdue.' I sipped the drink as Harry walked in. It was night, and he had been sleeping when I left, or, rather I thought he was. He walked over and sat down across from me. "What's up Harry?" I set the drink down and he looked at the wall.

"We should go to Coburg." He said. "I heard rumors that your home, it, was burned down by Coburg soldiers. Something is wrong, very, very, wrong, and we need to figure out what it is." I nodded as he looked at the drink. "So, what are you having? A little drink to help you sleep?"

"Just a little something for my father." I said. I took the glass carefully. "I'll pack it in when I'm finished." He nodded again as I took another sip.

"How is it?" He asked. I lowered the glass and looked over at the window to my right.

"Sweet, smooth, everything the guys in Whealbrook said it was when I was a kid." I said. I looked at it. Harry stood up and pushed the chair in.

"Good night Ace." He said. I nodded.  
…

We walked up to the gates of the castle. We had fought a good number of monsters along the way over the course of two days. We had gotten the Zizzwizz pillows, and they were unbelievably soft. I hadn't slept that good even as a child in the bed that Sancho made for me.

"Wow, it's been a while." Harry said. I nodded. Goolia waited in the cart again, mostly so she could watch our supplies. "I wonder if anyone will recognize me." I shrugged.

"I doubt it, though they might recognize your hair." I said. He snickered.

"If they don't recognize my hair, they'll remember your turban and cloak." He said. I laughed quietly as we walked forward. When we walked through the doors we walked past some pillars and by a large globe when Harry stopped. "Ace, let's keep my identity a secret for now. I'd rather avoid drawing any attention right now." He looked at me and I nodded. He nodded and we continued walking. We walked up to a guard and he held up his right hand.

"State your business." He said.

"We're here to see the king." Harry said.

"The king is feeling ill and is not taking visitors at this time." The guard said. Harry looked at me and sighed.

"Thanks anyway." He said. We turned and walked back to the globe and he stopped again. "Okay, if memory serves, there should be a secret entrance under the bridge, and there should be a raft on the west side of the castle." I blinked as he turned to me. "What, those guys that kidnapped me ten years ago used the raft, and it's always kept tied on the west side. I remember that the secret entrance is actually a secret exit that comes up in the courtyard." I nodded. "We just need to head in that way, and we can see my brother." I nodded again.


	4. Have some faith

**Hello, and welcome to chapter four of Ace's Journey. I've got a lot of updating to do, so I'll just skip straight to the disclaimer. I've got a lot of work, so I'll have to skip this Author's note.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to Dragon Quest. That goes to Square Enix.  
…**

We walked down up the stairs, thankful that the guards didn't seem too concerned with our presence. We had managed to sneak in through an old secret escape passage. We met a woman claiming to be the Queen, and she said that an impostor took her place shortly after Harry and I were made slaves.

"Man, talk about a lucky break." Harry whispered. I nodded.

"Yeah, now all we have to do is find your brother and we're in." I said. We walked up onto the floor that the throne was on and we turned to see the new King sitting with one arm supporting his head and his advisor looking at him worriedly. We walked up the stairs and the advisor stopped us.

"I'm sorry, but King Wilbur isn't feeling that well." He said.

"Please, come back later if what you have to say is important." Wilbur said tiredly. Harry looked at him as I stepped forward slightly. He wasn't happy at being a prince ten years ago, and now that the King was dead he had to take the throne since Harry and I were slaves at the time.

"A lackey does as his master says, eh Wilbur?" Harry whispered. Wilbur sat up slightly and his eyes went wide.

"Chancellor, please leave the room." He said quietly. The chancellor looked at Wilbur for a moment as I stepped aside. He turned and walked away, down the stairs. "Harry, is, is it really you?" Harry nodded.

"What happened Will?" He asked. "What happened to father?"  
…

Wilbur explained the whole thing to us, and we listened silently. The previous king had died some time ago, several years after we left. His health just started going down after Harry and I were kidnapped, and not one person could explain why, but they thought it was because he was so worried for Harry. When he died, Wilbur took the throne while his mother, Queen Dowager, helped him rule the kingdom. Apparently, not even a year passed before the queen declared war on Whealbrook and had it destroyed. I was still no closer to an answer to where Sancho was, but I knew he was alive. He was a fighter, and he was a good one at that. After destroying the town I called home, she began hiring mercenaries and various muscle to try to take over the nearby towns and subjugate them.

"So, pretty much to sum this whole thing up, the kingdom is ruled by my mother." Wilbur said. "Your hometown was destroyed because my mom said your dad kidnapped Harry, and she's growing more and more distant from me every day. She's just using me to, I don't know; take over the world or something."

"Well, this might be strange, but, she might not be your mother." I said. They both looked at me. "Harry, remember that lady we met in the escape tunnel? She said she was Wilbur's mother." He nodded. "Maybe she really is, and maybe, this Dowager is a fake. A Faux Dowager." They both nodded. "But, we'll need something to tell us which one is the real one."

"I think I know something." Wilbur said. "I remember hearing from someone, that this, mirror, exists in a tower a ways south of here, south of Fortuna. But it can only be entered by a monk from a monastery just a short distance south of Fortuna." I nodded.

"Heaven's Above Abbey." I said. He shrugged. "So, we just need to head south, get this mirror, and get back here with it."

"What about the monk?" Harry asked. "Or, well I guess if it is Heaven's Above, that'd mean that we'd need a Nun from the abbey." I nodded.

"I'm sure one of the ladies there will understand." I said. "And as long as we promise to protect her, I'm sure we can get to the mirror and clear this whole mess up."

"And clear your father's name while we're at it." Harry added.

"You know, there's talk of some books in the lower area of the castle." Wilbur said. "If you go there you can find out more." He held out a key to Harry. He took the key and nodded. "That's the key to every door in the castle. You should hurry, before, Dowager finds out. Goddess, I don't even know what to think right now."  
…

I looked the book over while Harry looked through the rest of them.

"I think I found something." I said. "There's mention of some kind of portal here that should lead right to the tower. People used to use things like this all the time centuries ago." He looked at me as I looked through the book. I looked over to a staircase and he followed my gaze. "That looks like a good place to check."

"I never knew this room existed." He said. "If this leads to the tower, we need to head to Heaven's Above first." I nodded. "So, shall we?" I nodded and put the book back. We walked down the stairs and through a door. "Whoa, what, what is that?" There was a pedestal with a swirling blue and white vortex. It was very large, and something about it just drew my eyes to the center of the white swirling mass. "Is that the portal?"

"It must be." I said. I walked up to it. "One of us should make sure it's safe. I'll go in and come back in a few seconds to tell you how it is." He nodded shakily as I stepped up to the portal. I put my right foot on it and it supported me. "So, I guess I have to get in the middle." I stepped forward, actually kind of enjoying the glow. It was also kind of fun because I didn't know if there was ground beneath me, so it was like I was floating in the air. I walked into the middle and suddenly the area around me was that of the outside with trees and stone pillars. I looked around. "Whoa, talk about getting around." I looked around and saw the tower; I turned and saw a familiar building. It was Heaven's Above Abbey. I took a few steps forward and then I turned around and went back through.

"Ace, are you okay man?" Harry asked. I nodded with a triumphant smile.

"This is kind of a fun way to travel." I said. "It's fast, and I mean fast. Literally, I'm here one second, and the next I'm gone. We'd better get Goolia and the cart in here." I took a step and felt a bit dizzy. I felt like I was going to fall so I slowly stepped onto the stairs.

"Ace, are you sure you're okay?" He asked. I nodded as I sat down.

"Yeah, but, I don't think we should be going through so often." I said. "It's probably meant for like, once every few hours, not every few seconds." He nodded. "Why don't you go back up top, get Goolia and Dusty, take them through the secret passage, and bring them here. I need a second or two to catch up with this thing." He nodded and I rested the oak staff across my lap as he walked out. When I knew he wasn't around, I sighed. I hated being alone. It used to be me and my dad, and Sancho, when I was six. I'd always have someone to help me if I was in trouble, and I could always count on my dad and Sancho. And when I was six, I went on my own adventures, finally being able to defend myself, even with a stick if I had to, but I was strong enough for my dad to smile when he learned what I did. One time, I pushed a rock off of a guy who was stuck trying to get herbs. Then we went to Roundbeck and I went on an adventure with Bianca, to banish the ghosts of Uptaten tower. In the process, we freed the souls of the Count and Countess of Uptaten. The joke wasn't lost on me that the name sounded like up to ten, and then the joke of Count Uptaten. It made me laugh when I realized it in the castle, and Bianca joined me when I told her. But the thing was, I was sad whenever I had to be alone. When Bianca told me her mother was allergic to pets, she gave me Saber, the Sabrekitten. I went on another adventure shortly after getting home to Whealbrook with the little yellow furred Saber, and that adventure was a good one. I was directly responsible for helping usher in Spring for that year. I had also met the courageous fairy Honey, who was very fun to be around, especially since I was the only one in the village that could see her back then. 'I wonder how they're all doing. Saber, I hope you're okay, wherever you are. Honey, I hope you're keeping the seasons in time.' My thoughts shifted to my old best friend from Roundbeck. 'Bianca, please be okay. I need to talk to my old friend. I promise; as long as there is breath in my body, I will find you my friend, so please wait for me.' My thoughts began turning toward Harry when he walked in with the cart behind him.

"Man, it's tough getting down here, but it's worth the effort, eh Ace?" He asked with a laugh. Goolia sat on the seat of the cart with a strange thing in her mouth. I recognized it as the old steel fangs I had bought Saber all those years ago. I nodded as he walked forward. "So, are you up to the next move? We should hurry before the situation gets worse." I nodded and stood up, using the staff to support my weight.

"Yeah, let's get this show on the road." I said.  
…

I stood at the entrance of the tower. I decided I'd take a look while Harry would talk to the ladies at the Abbey. I walked up to the blue door and took the handles and pulled, but the effort was completely wasted. I scratched my head.

'Wow, I haven't ever met a door I couldn't open.' I thought. I snapped my fingers and smiled. "Lots About Locks, a very good book indeed, even if I couldn't read it." I knelt by the lock and pulled out a pair of pins. I put them in and began the task of trying to open it. After ten minutes I heard the familiar sound of Dusty's trusty wagon wheels. I stopped and looked to see Harry and Maria on the seat side by side. They stopped the wagon a few yards from me and Goolia jumped out and moved over to me while Harry helped Maria get down. "Hey Goolia, how's Harry been treating you?"

"He's been really nice." She said. "He was nice enough to give me some Monster Munchies." I smiled and returned to my task. "What are you gooing?"

"I'm trying to pick the lock of a door with no key." I replied.

"It is said that only a devoted student of the goddess can open these doors." Maria said.

"I found a book ten years ago, a magical book." I explained. "It was called 'Lots About Locks', and it taught me how to pick locks."

"But ten years ago you didn't know how to read." Harry said simply.

"And while that is true, this was no ordinary book." I said. "As I said, it was a magical book. I picked it up and the words turned into glowing letters that flew into my head, endowing me with the knowledge contained on the pages. So, after that was done, I learned a lot about how to pick locks, and I'm wondering if I can pick these locks." I moved the pins and found that there were no tumblers at all. "On second thought, these locks are just for show. There is no key, because there are no tumblers." I pulled out the pins and put them away, scratching my head. "Well, this is out of my hands now." I stepped back and Maria walked up, putting her hands together. She started praying quietly and I stepped back. After a few moments a bright light descended on the door and it swung open. I let out an impressed whistle.  
…

We walked along the thin walkway and saw a disheartening sight. The bridge of stone was incomplete, with enough missing that made it impossible to cross, and it was too far to jump. The worst part was that the mirror was just across from us.

"Well, this is a problem." Harry said. Maria nodded. "So, what do we do from here?"

"The tower embodies having faith in the Goddess." She said. "But, I, I'm not sure. I only knew that I had to pray to open the front door. Other than that, I have no idea." I looked at the missing section and saw something. I walked over to the left side and the others watched as I knelt by the area. "What is it Milliardo?" I moved my staff to the missing area in the middle and swept it to the left, and it stopped a short way from me. I tapped the spot and stood up. I smiled and held out my right foot. "Milliardo!" I stepped forward and across safely and turned to bow, holding the staff out to my side.

"Thank you, I'll be here all day." I said smugly. I stood up and they were all staring at me.

"How did you goo that?" Goolia asked.

"It's not so much the power of faith, as it is the power of observation." I said. "There's a spot that is painted to look like it isn't there." I tapped the spot twice with the tip of the staff. "See? It's right there, but it doesn't look like it." They nodded as Goolia moved onto the spot slowly and smiled, hopping slightly.

"Hey, heads up." Harry said. I turned and stepped aside as a sword came down at me. "What is that?" There was a clanking sound and I noticed that it was a suit of empty armor.

"You shall not *clank* get this mirror." The armor said in a hollow metallic voice. "Not until you get *clank* past me." I drew my iron staff and set the oak staff on the ground.

"I'll handle this one Goolia." I said. I turned to see Harry fending off a few monsters called Ruff Ruffians. They were humanoid dogs with swords. "Go help Harry while I handle this guy." I turned back and held my staff up to block a strike from the sword. "We need this mirror to save a kingdom."

"I care not why you *clank* need it." The armor said. Every so often his visor would raise or fall, creating the clank. "You must defeat me to prove your *clank* worthiness to take this mirror." He swung again and I blocked. I pushed him back and slammed the staff into his midsection to knock him back. I jumped forward and stamped my right foot on his chest, knocking him down. I looked back to see Maria watching Harry with her hands over her mouth. Harry threw his sickle forward and pulled it back, hooking a Ruff Ruffian behind the neck, severing it on the way. I turned back and saw the armor standing up. "You are quite the fighter. May I *clank* ask for your name warrior?" I spun the staff and moved it behind me, ready to strike as he grabbed his sword.

"My name is Milliardo, son of Pankraz." I said. "My friends call me Ace. What do I call you o Restless Armor?" He let out a hollow laugh as he swung the sword.

"I was Sir Joe in life." He said. "But now they call me Sir Rusty." I stepped in and swung my staff and he blocked me with his shield. I stepped back and avoided his attack before swinging the staff. "You are a worthy foe *clank* indeed. Should you best me, would you *clank* allow me to travel with you? After the mirror is gone, I would have no *clank* purpose."

"If that's what you want, then you can join us." I said. "It never hurts to have more allies than you need than not enough." He laughed as I stepped back, nearly reaching the edge. I pointed my right hand forward and focused for a moment. I closed my eyes and whispered an incantation for a moment. I opened my eyes and saw him stepping back. "Swoosh!" A gust of wind rushed from my hand and buffeted him with loosed dirt and debris, but what surprised us both was when my oak staff flew from the ground and became lodged in his helmet, knocking it off and knocking him down.

"Odds bodkins, my helmet!" His voice said loudly. He hit the ground hard as the staff and helmet hit the ground by the mirror. His helmet fell loose and slid to a halt in front of the mirror. "I, I concede defeat." I walked forward as he moved his left arm up and I took it in my left. "You are quite the fighter *clank* Milliardo, son of Pankraz." His visor dropped again and he let out a sound like a sigh. He moved his sword and tried to put it away. "Could you, guide this, gah, bloody thing in?" I grabbed the tip and lined the sword up and he sheathed it. "Thank you. I'll be honest, that's the first time that's ever happened to me." He laughed and turned his body.

"How can you move when your head is over there?" Harry asked. I turned to see the others crossing the spot.

"My soul is bound to all parts of the armor but the shield and *clank* sword." Sir Rusty replied. I turned as he put the helmet back on the neck. "'tis my curse to spend my life as a suit of *clank* Restless Armor, a very monster I once was *clank* famous for defeating. 'til the day I find a way to pass on, I fight to do what I believe to *clank* be right in my *clank* heart, figuratively speaking of course." I nodded as he turned to the mirror. "Now, you said that this mirror is needed to save a *clank* kingdom, so let us make haste." I nodded and walked over, looking the mirror over. "All that you must do is *clank* pick it up. There are no traps from here." I nodded and put one hand on each side of the mirror and picked it up. I looked into it and saw a reflection of myself when I was a child. "This mirror shows the truth, and many has been the *clank* time I have stared into it to see the man I once was. Do not *clank* stare too long, because what it shows isn't always the truth you want to *clank* see." He put his right hand on my back and I continued staring at the young boy in the mirror. "Come my friend, we must hurry. Time is of the *clank* essence." I nodded and saw him standing by me, a tall gallant knight in full steel plate armor with blond hair. I lowered the mirror as a thought hit me.

"Uh, it's going to be hard to fight with this in my hands." I said. I turned to the group as they walked closer. "Maria, could you carry this? I think it would be for the best if it were in the hands of someone who won't be doing any fighting." She nodded and I handed it to her carefully. "After all, if that breaks, Coburg is doomed."


	5. Moving forward, leaving behind

**Chapter five of Dragon Quest V: Ace's Journey is brought to you by the chilling power of Lord Genesis Shadow, now taking a new one shot request. So, I hope you liked the action packed and emotional ending of chapter four. I have to say, of all my recent fics, this one is definitely a personal favorite. Many hours I've logged for the game, and I just keep thinking of more and more to write about. Don't worry, there's more to come on this. I really am surprised as well. This story is really picking up speed. Just last month it was competing with PMD: Jack's Journey, and now it's actually starting to get close to Gallade's Arm. I'm almost amazed at this point.**

**What can I say? I'm good at what I do. After all, I've been writing for two years, and look how far I've come. Started out with big blocks, and thanks to Ronin Drake I made progress in the first few weeks. After that I started getting better and better as I went along and I came out with Magical Hero. A long break later lead to rare posts, and finally I started anew, like a Phoenix from the ashes. Of course, Ice Demons don't exactly deal well with fire, so it was more like an Ice Demon from the bottom of a frozen lake. My return heralded The Man With a Gallade's Arm, which a lot of people really took to. I was nothing short of stunned at how well it did. Sadly, I've lost a bit of interest in it, so that's on hiatus. But, I'm getting back into the swing and I'm gaining more interest in it again. I've not even looked at a chapter of it for a few weeks except for a few moments to remind myself of what Zero looks like. After that, I let it return to the resting area so I could put out Kole Fire.**

**So, now that we've finished that little jaunt into the pointlessness, the disclaimer.**

**Disclaimer: I, Lord Genesis Shadow, do hereby state that I do not own the rights to Dragon Quest V, or any other Dragon Quest game. Square Enix owns the rights, and I applaud everyone that works for them, because they are kind enough to give us such great games.  
…**

I sat before the fire. We would go to Coburg in the morning, so we decided to spend the night near the portal. Sir Rusty didn't need to sleep, so he would stand watch the whole night. Goolia was already in the back of the wagon sleeping, and Harry was talking to Maria. I was staring into the fire, thinking about nothing in particular.

"Ace, are you okay pal?" Harry asked. I turned my eyes toward him and nodded.

"I'm just thinking." I said.

"Havin a little daydream over there?" He asked.

"It's night Harry; I can't have a daydream at night." I joked. He laughed while Maria covered her mouth to giggle. "No, I'm just remembering an old song Sancho would sing sometimes when he'd come home from the pub in Whealbrook. Dad sang it once in a while when we were on a ship if he'd have a drink."

"Oh?" Maria asked. "What is the song called?"

"Show me the way to go home." I said. "I always had a good time listening to Sancho or my dad singing it." They stared at me. "What, you want me to sing it?" They nodded as Sir Rusty walked up beside me. I looked up at him and I knew he wanted to hear it as well. "Okay, but I haven't even heard it in ten years, and I haven't sung it in as long." They all nodded as I leaned back slightly, trying to remember the words. "Show me the way to go home, I'm tired and I want to go to bed. I had a little drink about an hour ago, and it's gone right to my head. Wherever I may roam, o'er land or sea or foam, you can always hear me singin' this song, show me the way to go home." They all laughed as I smiled. I took another breath. The song could go on as long as a person felt like singing it. I decided to sound kind of like Sancho, when he'd slur his words if he had too much to drink. "Show me the way to go home, I'm tired and I wanna go to bed." They all laughed quietly. "I had a little drink about an hour ago, and it's gone right to my head." I faked a hiccough and they all laughed again. "Wherever I may roam, o'er land or sea or foam, you can always hear me singin' this song, show me the way to go home!" They all laughed again as I smiled.

"You're a good singer Ace." Harry said. "I've heard some good bards back at Coburg, but you're really good at it." I rubbed the back of my head.

"Well, I had to do something to pass the time as a kid." I said. "Dad wasn't around much when I was a kid, and he let Sancho raise me for the first four years of my life. I hardly saw much of him, but Sancho told me he was looking for my mom, who I thought had just disappeared." They nodded. "Pretty much, when Sancho had to go out for something, he'd let me take care of myself if I promised not to burn the house down." I chuckled. "So, while he was out getting food or whatever we needed, I'd spend time singing songs I'd heard around the village. Most were just little kid songs, but they were easy to remember. I'd spend the time Sancho was gone just singing to pass the time." I shrugged with a small smile. "You know what they say, that if you do one thing long enough, you get good at it." They nodded as I stretched. It was late. "I think I'm going to call it a night." I stood up, using the staff again.

"Does your leg hurt Milliardo?" Maria asked. I shook my head and smiled.

"I just like using it." I said. "I bought this when I was six, and I showed it to my dad. He called me a 'pint sized purple prophet' when he saw me walking with it." They smiled. "I guess I can't bear to part with it. It's a little childish, but it's a good staff, and it saved my life, well, who knows how many times really. I took on all kinds of monsters as a kid, and I used this very staff most of the time."

"Up until you got the iron staff." Harry added. I nodded.

"Yes, but I prefer to walk with this one." I said. "I feel like I'm a bit wiser for it, and go figure that out if you'd like." They laughed as I walked over to the wagon. I'd sleep near Dusty, who was now completely asleep. "Good night guys, Maria."  
…

I sat up and stretched. I stood up from my makeshift bedding and yawned.

'Man, those Zizzwizz pillows are amazing.' I thought through the yawn. 'Zonked me right out.' I knelt and grabbed the pillow and stood up with it. I smiled at how soft it was. I had put my head down on it, took two or three breaths and then I was out like a light. I looked around and saw Sir Rusty standing while looking around slowly. I smiled, knowing I could trust him. Thanks to Monty the Monster Monitor, I knew how to try to get monsters to trust me, just by not hitting them out of anger or just to get past them. I'd have to let them 'feel the love' and they'd maybe give me a shot at being their friend. I stretched and set the pillow in the wagon and grabbed my bedding when a thought hit me. I looked around and couldn't see Harry or Maria. I walked forward and turned my head around the corner of the wagon and saw them sleeping close together, sharing his Zizzwizz pillow. I smiled and knew that they were starting to grow on each other quickly. He'd protected her, and that made her see how much he liked her, and how much she liked him. I went back around the wagon and rolled up my bed and put it in the wagon, being careful not to wake Goolia. 'Good luck Harry.' I stretched again and grabbed my staff and walked over to Sir Rusty.

"Good morning Milliardo." He said. He turned to me. "You are no doubt aware that Sir Harry and Lady Maria spent the *clank* night together." I nodded. "I hope we succeed in our *clank* battle against this monster that is impersonating the queen of *clank* Coburg." I nodded again as Harry and Maria stirred. I'd keep my back to them.

"Let's not let them know that I know about them." I said. "They probably didn't count on me waking up so soon."  
…

"Now I _have_ seen everything." Harry said. We'd entered the castle from a side entrance and now we stood in the royal bed chamber with King Wilbur and two Queen Dowagers. "Which one is the real one?"

"I am the real queen, you must destroy that imposter!" The one on the left said.

"No, I am the queen!" The one on the right said loudly. She held her arms out to Wilbur. "Wilbur, you know your mother, please, you must get rid of this monster. Please." I stared at them with a bewildered look.

"Wow, I never thought I'd see anything like this." I said. I looked at Maria and she handed me the mirror.

"Harry, surely you know me, surely you have the sense to remember me." The one on the right pleaded.

"No, you know _me_!" The left one said. Wilbur took his head in his hands.

"Oh man, now I really don't feel good about this." He moaned. "I, I feel terrible that I can't figure out which one is my own mother." I held the mirror to my chest and pointed it at the queen on the right. It showed her reflection normally.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

"This should clear things up." I said. I turned the mirror to the left queen and I saw a very ugly monster. I handed the mirror back to Maria and put my oak staff against the wall behind me. "Okay, I know which of you is the real queen." I pulled out the iron staff as Sir Rusty drew his sword and Harry pulled out his sickle. Goolia growled with the fangs held in her mouth. I pointed the staff at the fake and she growled. "You are nothing more than a Faux Dowager, and for what you've done you must pay." The real queen ran behind me as the fake assumed her real form.

"So, you've figured out my ruse." She said in a sweet tone. "For that, I'd like to offer you a position as a general of my army. I need someone with brains _and_ brawn." I held my left hand out, two fingers up and the rest curled in. I muttered a short incantation and she growled. "You would fight the one that will rule this world?" I nodded and flung my hand out, a sense of power flowing into my body. The spell Buff made my skin tougher, and I used it when I needed to wade through a tough battle.

"We won't just fight, we'll win." I said. I ran forward when she smiled and whistled. A door opened and a group of monsters ran in. "Guys, take care of them while I handle this thing!" I held my staff out and pushed the now rushing queen back, making her giggle madly. I held the staff up and she continued her run, only for me to swing down and hit her in the left shoulder. She hit the ground and ran on her hands and knees at me. I jumped up and landed on her back, slamming her into the ground. I put my feet on the ground and turned to strike her with the pointed back end but she rolled and exhaled a freezing mist at me. I jumped back but it had already chilled my metal armor, making it quite uncomfortable to say the least. I saw her getting up and I began considering a Swoosh, but the area had a lot of loose debris that could hit the others, so I decided to keep up the physical assault. "You won't win Faux Dowager, so just give up now." She giggled as a crash was heard. Harry had used Bang, and it took out the monsters at the door. They turned when the fake queen whistled again. They turned as more monsters ran in.

"I have an army at my command." She said sweetly. "I will win this, but the offer for you to be my general still stands big boy." She winked at me and I spun the staff, putting it behind me while getting ready to attack. "Oh, you're no fun anymore. Now die!" She ran toward me and I spun, swinging the staff slightly up, and it was lucky for me that I had successfully guessed that she'd be jumping. The staff struck her in the side, flinging her across the room and into a wall.

"Give up already, you can't possibly win at this point." Harry said. He threw the sickle at a Healslime and sliced it in half.

"I'll show you who can't possibly win!" The fake screamed. I sighed angrily and pulled out my Zizzwizz pillow.

"Hey, think fast!" I yelled. I tossed it and she caught it, sniffing it a few times. She yawned and fell backward, asleep. I ran over and grabbed the pillow, tossing it aside. I swung the staff so that the bottom was pointing at her heart. "Now, you've caused too much trouble. It's your turn to bear the fate of those you condemned in Whealbrook." I stabbed her in the heart, just as her eyes opened. She screamed in pain as I stepped back slowly. The others all looked as she vanished in a puff of smoke. The staff fell to the ground, not a trace of blood on it. I wiped my forehead and sighed. "Okay, that takes care of her."  
…

"Thank you, all of you." The queen said. "Without you all, I'd still be in that prison, and this kingdom would still be run by that foul monster." She bowed to us and I blushed, rubbing the back of my head.

"It was nothing Milady; we just knew something was up." Harry said. "It wouldn't be right if we let Coburg be run by a monster bent on ruling the world."

"Harry, I think it's time you take your rightful place as ruler." Wilbur said. Harry shook his head. "But." Harry shook his head again.

"I can't rule Coburg Wilbur." He said. "A lackey does as his master says." Wilbur nodded slowly. "But that doesn't mean I can't stay behind and help you, right?" He turned to me. "I mean, as long as it's okay with you Ace." I nodded.

"If I had a brother, I'd do the same thing." I said. I held out my right hand. "It was fun while it lasted at least." He nodded and took my hand in a firm grip.

"Be sure to drop in some time." He said.

"Yes, you're always welcome here Milliardo." Wilbur said. His mother nodded.

"A hero like you will be welcomed with open arms, at any hour." She said. I smiled as Harry let go of my hand.

"So, I guess I'll be taking you back to the Abbey." I said to Maria. She shook her head.

"Actually, I'd like to stay for a while." She said. "All this excitement has been a bit much for me."

"When you want to go home, I'll take you there myself." Harry said. He looked at me. "Oh, and I put all that stuff you bought me in the wagon."

"And I had some guards put a reward for your help there as well." Wilbur said. "We owe you a lot Milliardo, so if you ever need our help, don't hesitate to ask." I nodded and bowed.

"Thank you." I said. "I'll stop by soon, I promise."  
…

I looked over the side of the ship and sighed. It felt good to be out to sea again. That trip in the barrel wasn't too bad, but it wasn't exactly scenic. It was good being able to see the ocean, and the sky was beautiful as well. King Wilbur had given me five thousand gold coins, so I didn't have to worry about money for a while, and the mirror helped me in a way. It would remind me of my lost time. I had a lot of catching up to do when I finally found Bianca. I stretched my back and grabbed my staff.

"Milliardo, are you okay?" A voice asked. I turned my head to see the captain.

"I'm fine captain." I said. "I haven't been on a ship in ten years, so I'm doing a little reminiscing." He nodded. "How are my friends?"

"Well, it was a bit tough to explain to the crew, but your friends are now on deck." He said. "I've got to ask, how did you manage to tame them? I've never seen anyone have tame monsters follow them before." I shrugged.

"It's a gift I have, I guess." I said. "Goolia, the Slime, took a liking to me a few weeks ago outside Fortuna. We bought a wagon, and after a week or so we ended up in a tower. Sir Rusty, the Restless Armor, joined after a heated battle." He nodded.

"Well, you've got some talent with monsters." He said. I nodded. "Well, we shall arrive in Lodestar Harbor in a few hours. In the meantime, feel free to take a look around the ship as you see fit." He walked away and I turned back to the ocean and inhaled. There was no smell as satisfying as the ocean.  
…

I walked onto the dock and behind a group of people. Sir Rusty sat on the bench of the wagon to guide Dusty and Goolia sat beside him, smiling as she almost always seemed to do. We left the dock and I spotted a pub after we walked a short distance. It was adjoined with an inn, and it was nearing sundown, so I figured it would be a good place to stay for the night. I walked up to the door and Sir Rusty walked behind me.

"Will you be okay in the wagon Goolia?" I asked. She hopped and nodded so I smiled. "Okay then, I'll be out in a few minutes to get some new equipment. The money we got should help us out a lot." We had earned an extra two thousand from monster battles along the way, and that put us at seven thousand four hundred. That meant I could get some good equipment later. Sir Rusty and I walked in and we immediately heard a commotion.

"Come on now, we'll help you." A male voice said. I looked to my right and saw a couple of Ruff Ruffians bothering a man with a straw hat on his head and a farmer's outfit. "Just give us the dosh and we'll help you out."

"Leave me alone." The man replied. He walked forward and slipped, landing flat on his back. The Ruffians stepped over to him and growled.

"Come on, just hand over the dosh and we'll be on our way." The second said.

"We should assist him *clank* forthwith." Sir Rusty said. I nodded and set my staff on the nearby table, carefully so as not to move the drinks of the patron.

"Pardon me, but could you keep an eye on this?" I asked. It was a noblewoman. She nodded slowly. "Thank you. I'll be back in a moment." She nodded again as we approached the duo of antagonists. "Hey, what seems to be the problem here?" The two turned to Sir Rusty and me as I pulled my metal staff off of my back and set it to my side. Sir Rusty tapped his sword hilt twice and the two drew their own swords.

"What, do you want in on this action?" The one on the right asked. I bounced the staff on the ground and grabbed the midsection.

"Yes." I said. The one on the left ran at me while Sir Rusty drew his sword and ran at the one on the right. They began dueling as I blocked the sword of my foe. I pushed him back and stepped in, slamming the heavy end of my staff into his face, pushing him further back. I put the other end into his stomach before swinging down with all my might on the top of his head, knocking him to the ground as his partner stepped back, putting his sword away.

"Wait, wait, we give up, we give up." He said quickly. He turned and picked up his partner and scrambled out the door over a drunk as Sir Rusty put his sword away.

"Well done, well done indeed." He said. "Victory is *clank* ours once again." I nodded as I put the staff on my back again. I stepped over to the table as the woman held the staff out to me.

"Thank you." I said. She nodded as I took the staff. She lowered her hand as I put the thin end on the ground. I turned to see the man standing up, brushing himself off. "Are you okay sir?" He looked at me and nodded.

"Yes, thanks to you." He said. He smiled. "Say, you're a traveler, am I right?" I nodded. "Good, good, in that case, I would like to ask a favor of you." Sir Rusty stepped up to me and the man stepped back slightly. "Er, uh, both of you." I nodded. "Good, I came from a village down south called 'Ay." He shook his head. "I, I mean _H_ay. I always forget the aitch. We've got this big monster attacking at night, and it's ruining our crops." I nodded. "We'll pay you three thousand gold coins to put an end to the beast. And I can pay you 'alf now if you take the job. What do you say?" I looked at Sir Rusty and then at the man.

"Well, I guess we can help." I said. "We just got here, but we didn't have an idea where to go at this point." He smiled and pulled out three large bags, and they looked to be the size of my five hundred capacity gold bags. He held them out and I took them in my left arm. "The village is south of here?" He nodded.

"Yeah, the village is a ways south of here, and you should hurry." He said. "The beast appears at night, and it takes a few hours from here to get there." He smiled. "Well, I should get going. I have to let everyone know I found a guy to take care of this." He walked away as I looked at the bags.

"Well, I suppose now we have more to shop with." I said. "This puts us at eight thousand, nine hundred even." I nodded. "Okay then, to the shops."


	6. An old friend and an old reminder

**Here is chapter Six of Ace's Journey, ready to go. It's taken a while for each chapter, but I really like this particular fic. The game is fun, and I can't help but enjoy writing about it. The best part, I didn't have to make an OC. The main character never spoke, so you never got a true feel for what he was like. This led me to a thought that he could be used as an OC that already has the physical part done. I just add a pair of pants, a name, and a personality, and I have a completed OC.**

**Okay, I talked about this in the other post of the week, but I want to make sure the information is passed. I am ready to take on another one shot request, so feel free to make a request. I work for free, and your idea gets full priority over everything else I'm working on. Oh, one thing to keep in mind, don't give me a direct timetable. If you tell me that you **_**have**_** to have your request done by a certain day, it puts pressure on me, and that can cause trouble. Just let me work at my pace and I'll give you an idea when I'll be done. I work for free, but I do require personal freedom so I can get the story done at a pace where I can work calmly. If I'm not calm, I tend to work faster than I should and that makes the story quality go down.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Dragon Quest. Square Enix does, and for that I thank them. If I ever get a job for Square Enix, I've got some personal thanks to give for all the fun they've given me and so many others.  
…**

I sat on the bench of the wagon, holding onto the reins as Dusty walked on. Sir Rusty was now polishing his sword while Goolia slept. I had sold my iron staff for four hundred and twenty five gold, and my iron armor for six hundred. I put in the iron shield for an additional three hundred and sixty. I bought a Magic Shield for thirty six hundred, a suit of full plate armor for twenty three hundred, and a steel broadsword for two thousand. We had two thousand five hundred and ten gold coins left at the time.

"Milliardo?" Goolia asked. I turned my head to look at her. "How close are we now?" I looked ahead. It was getting dark, but the village looked to be less than an hour away.

"We're almost there." I said. I looked around and didn't see a single monster around. It was good for the quiet, but monsters carried money for some reason, and fighting monsters yielded us more income. It was the only way for us to earn a living at this point, aside from doing odd jobs for people, like what we were doing now. My staff was resting on my lap, and my new sword was on my left hip. It was a big step up from my staff, despite the cost. I yawned slightly. It was a long trip on the ship, and our little excursion on the wagon wasn't exactly that fast. I looked at the village and raised the reins slightly and tapped Dusty with them. She picked up her pace and I figured another half hour at this pace. I lowered my head slightly and looked at the oak staff and smiled. 'Dad, I hope I can find mom. But what I hope for more, is that you know I still love you. Your pint sized purple prophet is growing up.'  
…

I walked into the town and saw something in the field, something big. It was on four legs and it turned to look at us. I drew the sword after putting the staff on my back. It took off past me and I swung down while Goolia yelped and jumped up. My sword sank into the soft ground, missing completely while Sir Rusty fell victim to a tackle and ended up on his back, yelling loudly and making a loud clank when he sounded about to curse. I looked back as the monster fled. I growled and looked at my sword and stared at what was on it. A familiar looking yellow ribbon was sitting on the blade, so I leaned forward and picked it off. I pulled the sword out of the ground and stared at the ribbon as Sir Rusty stood up, muttering and clanking occasionally.

"What is that Milliardo?" Goolia asked. I looked down at her and then at the ribbon. "Where did that come from?"

"I guess from that, thing." I said quietly. I looked at the ribbon intently and rubbed it between my index and thumb for a few seconds. I had a vision of Bianca, and I remembered she wore a ribbon _exactly_ like the one in my hand. I realized that it was the ribbon she tied on Saber's tail ten years ago. "I know this ribbon. This, this belonged to a friend of mine, and she put it on…" I stared at it. "I think I know this beast."  
…

I walked along the path in the cave slowly, thinking about what may have been at the end.

"Milliardo, are you sure about this?" Goolia asked. I nodded. "I hope you're right."

"I have to be." I said. "If I'm wrong, I'll end up on the wrong end of a sharp set of teeth." We walked up to a mini cave within the cave and I stared in. We walked in and I saw the beast. I recognized it as a Great Sabrecat. It looked at me and I saw that the eyes were familiar. "Stay back, but be ready if I get attacked." I stepped forward alone and swallowed hard, the ribbon held tightly in my right hand. The Sabrecat growled at me and I steeled my nerves as I stepped closer. It watched as I dangled the ribbon in front of it. "Saber, do you remember me?" It blinked and sniffed. "It's me, your old friend Milliardo. I took care of you, and we went on that adventure in Faerie Lea, remember?" He sniffed and suddenly jumped at me and knocked me to the ground, licking my face. I laughed as I tried to dislodge him.

"Milliardo!" Goolia called.

"Wait, wait." I called through my laughter. "It is, it's Saber, my old Sabrekitten all grown up." I laughed as he continued licking me. I rubbed every inch of his fur I could manage while he kept licking me. I turned my head but he kept licking my face for a few minutes.

"This is amazing." Sir Rusty said. He stepped forward as Saber moved off of me, and I could have sworn I saw a smile on his face. "I knew you could befriend *clank* monsters like me and Goolia, but *clank* I had no idea you had befriended a Great Sabrecat." I smiled as I stood up. I watched as Saber grabbed something. He walked over with a sword in a scabbard in his mouth and he set it down in front of me.

"What's this?" I asked. I grabbed the scabbard with my right hand and looked at the sword for a moment and my eyes went wide. "This, this is…" I stared at it intently as Saber licked my left hand. I looked at him and he looked up at me and let out a slight whining growl.

"What is it Milliardo?" Goolia asked.

"This is, this sword belonged to my father, Pankraz." I said quietly. I stared at the scabbard. I couldn't count the times I'd seen my father draw that sword and lay waste to any number of monsters without taking even a single hit. I set the sword on the ground, resting it against my leg. "Sir Rusty, I want you to use my steel broadsword. I'm using this one now. My dad would've wanted me to, I know it." I removed the scabbard from my waist and held it out. Sir Rusty took it slowly as I stood up, grabbing my father's sword. I put it in the loop on my leather belt as Saber wagged his tail. "What do you say Saber old buddy? Would you like to go on another adventure?" He wagged his tail faster as I turned around slowly. He stayed at my left side and I looked at the ribbon. "Hang on." I knelt by him and tied the ribbon to his tail again, slightly tighter so it wouldn't fall off. "There you go pal. Bianca wouldn't want you to lose this." I stood up and saw a group of monsters walking toward the cave. I smiled as I drew my father's sword from the black scabbard. I felt ten times stronger than I'd ever felt in my life. I spun it over my wrist and smiled wider. "Looks like we have company."

"I'd say this is a good test for your *clank* new sword." Sir Rusty said.

"I'll see if I'm worthy to use my old man's blade." I said. I stepped forward as I identified the monsters. They were Jiggery Pokerers, humanoids with spears that attacked random people, as most monsters did. I ran forward and sliced the first one cleanly in half, and there was almost no resistance. The swing actually kept going and carved straight through another like it was going through the air and nothing more. The steel broadsword I gave Sir Rusty rang through the air along with his old sword, cutting down two more. There were eight in all. I cut a spear in half and kicked another into a pool of water. Saber jumped onto one and tore the throat of it out while Goolia did the same to the other, though she wasn't even half as ferocious in her attack. I stabbed the Jiggery in front of me and raised the blade, splitting it in half vertically from the middle of the body. The other came out of the water and was pounced by Saber. I swung the sword hard and the blood was swept to the ground. I stared at it. It was as sharp as I remembered it from my childhood. It cut through monsters effortlessly in my father's hands, and now it cut through just as easily in mine. "I'd say that I'm worthy." I put it in the scabbard and smiled again. "Thanks dad."  
…

We were all in the wagon as we headed toward a town called Zoomingale. The people at the town of Hay paid me, but they thought I was in league with Saber right away and was running a scam. I saw this terrifying scarecrow and a man tending to it. He had instantly offered it and tossed it into the wagon before I could say anything.

"That was, interesting." Sir Rusty said. I nodded as Dusty kept walking toward the town now visible in the distance. Saber was in the back with the others and I was at the reins, smiling. "I have never seen such a *clank* fearsome scarecrow before."

"It's scary enough to make a Metal Slime run for cover." Goolia said. I nodded and looked back as Saber yawned and put his head on the Zizzwizz Harry had put in the wagon. I smiled and looked ahead. "Wow, looks like you're not the only one that likes that pillow." I nodded again.  
…

I sat in the corner of the bar at the table. Sir Rusty was gathering information and Saber was resting at my feet. The whole of the bar watched when I came in, but they'd stopped when they saw Saber fall asleep. Sir Rusty was talking to various people and I was just drinking a glass of water. Whiskey was okay, but I preferred to stick to water. I had learned a few things on my own, mostly concerning an old man working on some spell in his lab. I'd check that out later, but for the time being I was just enjoying the quiet. I had my left hand resting on Saber's head, and my right was near the water in front of me. Goolia was keeping an eye on the cart, and she preferred it that way. She told me that when we were in Fortuna, she didn't like how almost everyone stared at her.

'I wonder what we'll do from here.' I thought. 'I've got my father's sword, I have the Zenithian Sword, and I have a wagon and three monsters travelling with me. I have no idea where I'll go from here.' I looked at the glass. I knew that I would one day need a ship, but I had no idea when I'd need it. A month and a half had passed since I'd left Crocodiloplis, the place that held me as a slave for ten years, the place that had honed my muscles to the point they were at, and the place that robbed me of my father and my childhood. I had only a few permanent scars, and the one on my right eye was the only noticeable one. 'If I can get a ship, I can continue searching where my father went. I know he was smart, and he was very good at finding whatever he needed to find, but these items are legendary. The only way I'll find them is by being smarter than him, more observant, and I'll need more help.' Saber yawned and I looked down at him. I rubbed his right ear and he closed his eyes and rested his head on his paws. 'Saber, Sir Rusty, and Goolia, you are my friends now, my allies, and the only ones I have to help me right now. I appreciate you all, but I need more help than what you can all offer. I need some human help, someone I can get to know as more than just my friends and allies.' I looked up and saw Sir Rusty walking up to the table. He sat down and lowered his gaze to the table. "How was the chatter?"

"Not good." He said. "What little I managed to *clank* coax out of the other patrons wasn't related to what we are *clank* searching for. The old man is researching a spell called Zoom, which lets the user go *clank* anywhere they have previously been, or so the old man says. It's a spell that's been *clank* forgotten, and it's so old he needs a catalyst to *clank* make it work again." I nodded and grabbed the water as I scratched around Saber's right ear. I took a sip and thought about the spell. "It would be a blessing of a spell for *clank* you to be able to use. You could travel to Coburg, or wherever else you've been for *clank* whatever purpose you want." I put the now empty glass down and nodded again.

"I guess we can see what the old man needs." I said. "With a spell like that, we'd be able to come and go to any town we want at the drop of a hat." He nodded. "Was there anything else? Like monsters bothering people outside of town, or anything interesting?" He shook his helmet slowly.

"No, the most I learned was gossip." He said. "The only thing remotely interesting was that *clank* some fellow broke up with his *clank* girlfriend a few days ago. She apparently threw his underwear out of his *clank* window while he was outside below." I laughed quietly while Saber yawned again.  
…

I walked up to the door of the old man's house, the one that was billowing smoke at apparently all hours of the day. There was a sign he made that said that anyone who wanted to be his research assistant should just walk in and inquire about his work. I opened the door and walked in. I saw a massive pot which was issuing a cloud of white smoke through the chimney.

"Hello there." A male voice said. "I'm over here. Please, if you're here for the job, I need to take a look at you." I walked toward the voice, which came from behind the pot. I walked around while Saber followed me. Sir Rusty had gone to the wagon to check on Goolia. I saw the old man as he walked around to see me. "Hello, you're here for the job?" I nodded. "Good, let me take a good look at you." Saber yawned and the old man looked down and stepped back. "Th-that's a Great Sabrecat!" I looked at Saber and knelt to pet him for a moment.

"He won't bite." I said. "He may be a Sabrecat, but he's tame." The man nodded slowly. "Go ahead and pet him if you want. His fur is quite softer than it looks."

"Um, I believe you." He said. I stood up and Saber lowered his body to the ground and set his head on his paws. "So, do you know what I'm trying to do?"

"You're trying to revive a spell that hasn't been used in a long time." I said. He nodded.

"Yes, and just by looking at you, I know you can help me." He said. "I just need one more ingredient to finish reviving the spell. I need a flower called the Lunar Zoombloom. So, are you willing to help me?"

"A spell like that could be useful." I said. "And I know I could sure use a faster way to get around."

"Okay then, do you have a map?" He asked. I nodded and pulled out the map from my personal kit. I handed it to him and he walked over to a bench. I followed him but Saber remained resting. He looked at the map and pointed to a spot a good distance to the west. "Here is where you'll find it. Now to ensure you find it, you should look at night. Zoombloom flowers glow in the dark, so you should be able to find it easily." I nodded as he made a small black circle. "This is the best place to look, right by the sea." He rolled up the map and handed it to me.

"I'll be back as soon as I can." I said.

"Before you go, there is a book that details how to use the spell." He said. He walked over to a nearby shelf and pulled out a book. He looked at the cover and walked over to me. "Study this and when you return with the Zoombloom, you can try it out right away by using Zoom to fly out of the chimney." I nodded.  
…

Two weeks of travelling proved worthwhile when we finally reached the location on the map. Now we just had to wait until nightfall.

"So, this is the area with the Lunar Zoombloom." Goolia said. "It took some gooing, but we made it." I nodded slowly.

"Now all we must do is *clank* wait for night to fall." Sir Rusty said. I nodded but I suddenly remembered something.

"Or maybe we don't have to wait at all." I said. They both looked at me as I grabbed a bag. "A few months back I found something interesting. Do you remember the cave Goolia?" She nodded and a look of comprehension dawned on her face. "We found a strange lamp that doesn't make light, but rather creates a distortion in time that takes those in the area into night." Sir Rusty nodded while I pulled out the lamp. "Just light it and you find yourself in the middle of the night. To us it will be night in less than an instant but to the rest of the world a whole day passes." I pulled out a match and struck it. I held it to the spout of the lamp and a black flame appeared. I blinked and it was night, the stars visible in the cloudless sky.

"Amazing." Sir Rusty said. "I have never seen such a *clank* magnificent magical item before." I smiled and blew out the black flame and put the lamp in the bag again.

"Now we just need to find the Zoombloom." I said. I had read the book from cover to cover, and it was an amazingly simple spell with many surprisingly complex parts. All I had to do was focus my magical energy and imagine that I was flying through the air toward my destination. It was easy to use, but I'd have to perfectly focus my mind to get exactly where I needed to go, or I could end up somewhere that I didn't actually intend.


	7. Moving forward, left behind

**Chapter seven, Dragon Quest V: Ace's Journey, what more do you need to know? Okay, I could talk here, prattle on and on… Well, that actually is what I'm going to do. I'd like to make note that I'm going to make sure that all of you know that I'm taking requests. Even when I've made note of who I'm working for at a given time, and though I only do one at a time, once I'm done with the first, I move on to the next right away. I focus on one at a time to maximize the rate at which they get done.**

**Now, about this chapter, it's primarily filler, and I'm not doing as many action scenes you'll notice. I'm not an action writer; I'm a general style writer, mostly in romance or friendship with a bit of adventure and drama. I can cover a lot of styles, but I need a lot of training in all areas.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to Dragon Quest. The day I do is the day all gamers who loved Square Enix hate me.  
…**

I walked into the old man's house again, my personal item bag now one Zoombloom flower heavier than when I left. Sir Rusty and the others were waiting in the Wagon, and I'd be returning when the spell was revived.

"Ah, you're back." The old man said. "Did you get the Zoombloom?" I nodded and pulled it out of the bag. I handed it to him and he smiled. "Okay, now all I need to do is throw this into the cauldron and the spell will be revived." He turned and threw it high into the air, and I heard it hit some liquid. There was only silence and I wondered if the Zoombloom wasn't fresh enough or if it was the wrong flower altogether. "This is strange. I thought for sure something would happen." There was a loud rumble and the room was suddenly filled with purple smoke and we fell to the ground as a loud explosion rang out. I stayed on the ground for a few moments as the smoke cleared. "Was that it?" I stood up as the old man dusted himself off. "Do you feel any different?" I shook my head slowly. "Perhaps you should try it out." I nodded and focused my thoughts on the entrance to the town.

"Here goes nothing." I said. I looked up and suddenly felt as if I were flying. The sky was getting closer and I heard the old man shouting something. I looked down and saw my destination, the area directly in front of the wagon. I flew down without warning directly in front of Sir Rusty. They all stared as I hovered for a moment before my feet touched the ground. "Hello everyone."

"Milliardo!" Goolia said happily. "Does this mean that you know the spell Zoom?" I smiled and nodded. "Wow, that's amazing." I chuckled as Sir Rusty let out a clanking sigh.

"You certainly know how to *clank* make an entrance." He said. I laughed for a moment before he sighed again. "Well, I went to the pub while you were walking to the *clank* old man's residence. There is talk of a legendary shield owned *clank* by the Briscoletti family in a town south of here called *clank* Monstroferrato. We should investigate, for there is always a grain of *clank* truth in any rumor, but we must pass through a cave." I nodded. "I shall mark the cave on the map, so we should go *clank* forthwith." I pulled out the map and he set it on his shield as I handed him a pen. "There is an inn by the cave, so we should stop there to see if *clank* any patrons there have heard of such rumors as the folks in the *clank* pub."  
…

I quickly Zoomed us to Hay and from there we made our way to the inn. It was late when we got there, but there was still enough light that we could make Monstroferrato by night.

"Hello, welcome to our inn." The woman at the desk said. "Will you be staying the night?"

"No, we're just here to check up on any rumors." I said. The woman smiled.

"Well then, I think you'll like this." She said. She grabbed a book from behind the desk and set it in front of me. "This is the Scuttlebutt Alledger. It's a magical book that contains any rumor you could ask of it. All you have to do is say the name of a subject and it fills itself with all the rumors in the world about it, no matter how obscure. It writes itself, has everything in alphabetical order, and has a table of contents, but just so you know, it changes size depending on the number of rumors about a given subject." She held it out and smiled. I grabbed the edge lightly and she let go of it. "Free of charge. We've got plenty to go around, and we can make more as long as we've got paper."

"Thanks." I said. "This should really help me out."

"Oh yeah, it saves hours of pub crawling." She said. I looked at the cover of the book and nodded.  
…

We walked through the cave, being wary of any monsters. We hadn't seen any in a while, but we weren't about to let our guard down for anything.

"Excuse me." A man said. I looked to my right and saw a guard in a familiar outfit. He was from Coburg. "Are you Milliardo Gotha?"

"I am." I said. "Is something happening in Coburg?"

"Yes." He said. He walked over and handed me a letter. "I've had this for a week and a half, and I heard you'd be passing through here." I opened the letter. It was a wedding invitation from Harry.

"Harry's getting married?" I asked. I looked to see the soldier nodding. I looked at the letter. "To Maria. I thought as much would happen."

"You should hurry, or you'll miss it." He said. "But I doubt you'll make it in time. No ship can get you there fast enough I'm afraid." I smiled and tucked the invitation back into the envelope, stowing it in my bag.

"I think I should make it in time." I said. The wedding date wasn't written, so I hoped I would be right. "What will you do?"

"I'll be heading back as well." He said.

"We can get there together then." I said. He nodded as we all turned. "I'm sure he'll be surprised when we show up."  
…

We all landed lightly on the ground and the soldier dropped to his knees, kissing the ground.

"I guess flying isn't your personal choice of how to travel." I said. He nodded and panted. He had screamed for the first few miles, but he soon turned to whimpering from the back of the wagon. I had sat on the driver's seat while Dusty galloped, probably just to be doing something. The others were okay, though Goolia seemed a bit nervous.

"I think we should hurry." He said. "We may yet be able to get to the wedding."  
…

I walked into the royal bedroom, guided by one of the castle guards. We had indeed missed the wedding, but Harry still wanted to see me. The others were in the wagon, not wanting to scare anyone in town. I saw Harry and Maria sitting on a couch, his right arm around her shoulder while she blushed with a content smile. They looked over at me and smiled in sync.

"Hey Ace, how've you been?" Harry asked.

"You know, just looking for the Zenithian Equipment." I said. They nodded. "So, you two tied the knot while I was away." They nodded and smiled wider. "I wish I could have been here for the wedding."

"Yeah, it was perfect." Maria said.

"It went off without a hitch." Harry said. "And I got to marry the most beautiful girl in the world." Maria blushed deeper. "How did you get here by the way? I would have thought it would be too late since you left on the ship. I would have thought you'd search around this continent for a while, but when we heard you left, the day after I proposed by the way, I had to send a guy out, and we had the date already set." I smiled.

"Well, not to brag, but I learned a new trick." I said. "A little trick called Zoom. It lets me return to anywhere I've already been."

"Wow, I've never heard of such magic." Maria said.

"It was actually a pretty common spell a few hundred years ago." I said. "One day though people just forgot about it and the magic faded from the world. When somebody went to use it one day, it didn't work, so it eventually was completely forgotten."

"So how did you learn it?" Harry asked. I rubbed the back of my head and closed my eyes with a smile.

"Well, it wasn't too hard, but I did an old man a favor, and he revived the magic for the spell." I said. "I found this plant called a Lunar Zoombloom and he put it in this massive cauldron, and the spell came back."

"Wow." Maria said. "Sounds like you worked hard to get the spell to come back." I smiled.

"It wasn't too tough." I said. "It took three weeks to get to it, but it wasn't a big pain. It was mostly just the travelling."  
…

I sat on the bed in the room Harry had let me stay in. I had taken a bath, and it was pretty much the best bath I'd ever had in my life. The water was hot, the room was amazing, and there was even soap, something my father hadn't been able to get a lot of, and most of the time he had Sancho use it. The maids were instructed to clean my clothes, and some people were called in to clean my father's sword, but I had polished it myself. It was now practically like a mirror, just like my father had kept it. The robe I was provided with was incredibly soft silk, and I kept a purple towel wrapped around my head, and when I looked in a mirror it looked like my old turban.

"Man, I wish I could have been here for the wedding." I said quietly. I patted the bed and it was incredibly soft, and the sheets were also made of silk. "Jeeze, how cozy does someone need to be to fall asleep?" I sniffed once and noticed a very familiar scent. I looked at the pillow and sniffed again. It was a Zizzwizz. "No way, he got more of these? The moment I lay my head on that thing I'm gone, no doubt." I chuckled for a moment before sighing. I felt a pang of guilt from being comfortable when I should have been trying to get to Monstroferrato. I had to find the Zenithian Equipment, but I was resting. "Maybe I should get going, and maybe leave a message so they don't worry." I looked at the floor. "But then again, my clothes are being washed right now, so that might be a problem." I laughed. "Yeah, I can't leave my favorite outfit here while I travel." I moved back on the bed and put my legs under the blanket. "I'd better get some sleep. I've got to go back to that inn by the cave, and then I need to go to Monstroferrato and see about that shield." I had a sudden thought. I leaned up against the headboard and grabbed the bag I had set on the nightstand. There was enough light for me to read the Scuttlebutt Alledger. I pulled the book out and looked it over. "The shield that the Briscoletti family owns, what's the talk about it recently?" The book thinned considerably, probably no more than twenty pages. I looked at the table of contents and saw something interesting. It was labeled 'Can you believe this? This shield is so amazing, and he's giving it away to anyone who marries his daughter?' I stared at it. "Page, fourteen." I flipped the pages to it and read it carefully. 'This is awesome; I can't believe Mr. Briscoletti is just giving this to the guy who's willing to marry that sweet and beautiful daughter of his. I think I'll check this out. She's so beautiful, and I bet she knows her way around the kitchen. –Gerard Michaels to Mick Stark.' I blinked. "To get the shield, I would have to marry the daughter of, Briscoletti?" I thought about the name. "Where have I heard that name before? I know that name from somewhere. Wait, back then, ten years ago, on that boat." The memories flashed before my eyes.

'Ah, here is the Maestro of the vessel, the captain.' The man said. He was large and powerfully built. He confidently stepped on board. My father stepped back as he stepped onto the deck. I watched as he and my father spoke for a moment. After a few seconds, a girl with black hair in a red dress jumped on board, pushing past him and my father and the captain after saying something fast. 'Oh, that is my little Debora. So full of energy and life my little bambina.' Another girl struggled to climb up, but she couldn't make it. She was about six, the same age as I had been.

'Papa, I can't make it.' She said quietly. She seemed shy. She had blue hair, something I had never seen before. My dad stepped over and offered his right hand.

'Here, let me help you up dear.' He said kindly. She took his hand and he pulled her up. She blushed and bowed before walking away. 'So, how have you been Mr. Briscoletti?'

"That's where I know him." I said. "He was there that day when I came back to Whealbrook with my dad. Those girls, I'd have to marry one of them in order to get the shield." I thought about the girls. Debora was a bit rude as a child, but perhaps she'd matured and left the rudeness behind. And the other girl, I found her name to be Nera. I had talked to them, and Debora was just as rude as I'd expected, and Nera was just as shy as I'd thought. I thought about the prospect. 'Maybe it would be nice being married. Harry and Maria seem happy, so maybe it's time for me too.' I closed the book and considered checking rumors on marriage, but I put it away. 'I'll cross that bridge when I get to it. For now, I think I'll call it a night.'  
…

I stretched after pulling on my left boot. I stood up and walked over to the door after grabbing my staff. I had to get going, and I had to be careful about how I left. I had only so long before someone else managed to marry Nera. As callous as it seemed to me, I had to marry her to get the shield, because if it was the Zenithian shield, I _had_ to get it. In order to make sure the Hero had his equipment, I had to do whatever it took, even if it meant not marrying for love. Though, I didn't necessarily have to not get to know her.

'If I marry her, I'll try to be as good a husband as I can be.' I thought. 'It's only fair that I be kind to her and supportive, even if I have to leave for months on end, I'll try to Zoom back every chance I get. I'll let her know that my journey won't come before her, no matter how important my mother is to me.' I walked through the door and saw Harry standing against the wall. He had a small smile.

"Heading out?" He asked. I nodded. "I understand. Things to do, people to see, places to go, and pieces of the Zenithian Equipment to find and ready for the legendary hero." He laughed quietly. "You know, I always thought Maria would've fallen for you. Between you and me, you're the better man."

"No, I'm just some guy trying to save his mother." I said. "You're a prince, and I have a mission I have to complete no matter what. You can give her all the attention she deserves, all the things she wants, and you'll always be by her side. I have to travel every day, over rough terrain, through forests, mountains, and who knows how many monsters I'll have to fight." He nodded slowly. "Maria isn't the type who fights, and I can't always keep my eye on everyone in a fight. Sure I can heal some wounds, but even then I can only do so much. I'm not the greatest fighter, or the greatest mage, or the greatest anything. I'm just Milliardo, son of Pankraz, and I have something I have to do that nobody else can." He nodded again.

"Well, for what it's worth, I think you'll be a great husband someday." He said. "If you ever find a girl you love more than anything else, I know she'll love you just as much. One thing I know for sure, she'll always be on her toes when you're around. Monsters, caves, treasure, and all the travelling and exotic cities you'll see with her, I know she won't every say you never took her anywhere." I laughed quietly. "Milliardo, you're a strong man, and I'd bet my very life that your dad, Pankraz, is looking down from heaven at you with a big smile right now. Knowing that his little boy grew up, unfazed by those ten years as a slave, still trying to finish what he started." I smiled. "I can't say I'm not envious of you, because you're a better man than I'll ever be. You're stronger than anyone out there, and not just physically. You've got a big heart, a kind face, and you're one of the nicest guys I know." He stepped from the wall and held out his right hand. "I for one am proud to call you my friend, no, my brother." I switched the staff and took his hand. "We may not be related, but as far as I care, you're as much my brother as Wilbur is."

"Thanks." I said. I was fighting back the tears, and it took all my strength to keep my voice from cracking. "I'll stop by again sometime." I smiled. "After all, I have to keep an eye on my little brother." He stared before he started laughing. I joined him while a few guards passed by, no doubt confused.


	8. The things I do for love, are worth it

**Chapter eight. Dragon Quest V: Ace's Journey. What more do you need to know? Okay, here's what you need to know. As of October eight I've started my interests in Gallade's Arm up again, so you'll be happy to know I'm back in the saddle for it. Now that I'm working, I need to get the filler out of the way and I can get it back online.**

**Another thing you should know, I'm still taking requests, even though I'm working on my own projects. I enjoy seeing into the minds of my fellow authors, and I like lending a hand wherever I can. Now, you might think from my requests so far that I do mostly Pokémon. This isn't true. I can do other subjects, so don't think I specialize in Pokémon alone. If I've seen it or have access to information about it, odds are I can come up with a slice of my usual work about it.**

**Lastly for today's update, you'll notice, if you have me on your alert list, that I've posted not just one new fic, but two. I've decided that with the Fallout 3 Game Of The Year edition coming out next week, which I shall be getting thankfully, I'm posting Fallout Warrior. I do hope you enjoy it, because I worked for a good long while on it. Overall, if you liked Fallout 3 but didn't think the main character had enough in the way of personality, then this fic may just be for you.**

**Disclaimer: Okay, I guess I can do this. *Ahem* I, Lord Genesis Shadow, do hereby state that I do not, in any way, shape, or form, own the rights to Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride in this, or any alternate, universe. Thank you for your time. Enjoy this chapter, please.  
…**

I walked through the gate, the others once more waiting in the wagon, mostly to protect it from any would be thieves. I wasn't paying much attention though. I had my thoughts on the things I'd read in the Scuttlebutt Alledger. They said that Nera was incredibly beautiful. I wondered if it would be right if I actually did marry her. I figured that maybe I could convince her father to part with the shield somehow, and even if I couldn't, I could maybe convince her or her husband to part with it. My thoughts were halted when I heard a dog bark.

"Bingo, come back here boy!" A young girl yelled. I looked as the dog ran up to me, stopping only a few feet from me. I knelt and the dog stared at me as he panted. I held out my left hand for him to sniff, and he did. He licked my hand and I moved it to pet him. He didn't bite me, but rather kept panting as I kept petting him. The girl stopped and he turned to her as I moved my hand away. She was breathing hard and looked to have been running. I noticed her hair was blue, and memories of my first meeting with Nera on the ship ten years ago flashed by in an instant. "Thank you, I thought he was going to get out of town this time for sure." She leaned forward as I stood up. Bingo barked twice as she tried to catch her breath. "It's a good thing you were here." She stood up, never taking her eyes from Bingo. She looked at me and stared for a moment. Our eyes met and I knew she was Nera Briscoletti. There was no mistaking her hair or her eyes, which were only a slightly lighter shade of blue. I stayed silent as she started blushing. She blinked and shook her head. "I'm sorry, I, I don't know what came over me." She bowed. "Thank you for stopping Bingo from running away." She stood up as Bingo walked over to her right side. "I'm Nera, Nera Briscoletti." I bowed politely as my father had taught me long ago.

"I am Milliardo Gotha." I said. I stood up and she nodded slowly. I wondered if she remembered me. "Everybody calls me Ace though."

"Why do they call you Ace?" She asked. I smiled.

"I'm lucky." I said. "It's like I have all the aces right when I need them the most." She giggled quietly but looked over her right shoulder.

"I, have to be going." She said. "Papa wouldn't be happy with my being out so late." She looked at me. "Thank you again Mr. Gotha." I raised my left hand.

"Please, you don't need to be formal with me." I said. She smiled slightly. "Milliardo will do just fine."

"Um, I'll see you around sometime?" She asked. I nodded.

"I certainly hope so." I said. She blushed and bowed before turning.

"Come along Bingo." She said. She walked away with Bingo at her side.

'Yes, she's definitely the girl from the boat.' I thought. 'I wonder if her father would recognize me. It wouldn't surprise me.' I walked down the path calmly toward the large house. 'I hope she won't mind marrying me. I need this shield to find my mother, but I hope she can forgive my selfishness in getting it.'  
…

I walked into the house and was greeted by a kind looking maid. There were three other men there, a bard, a burly man, and a guy that looked like he ran a shop. The maid bowed and walked toward me.

"Are you here to marry Miss Nera?" She asked. I nodded. She gestured to the men. "Please, stand with the others. You will find out everything you need to know in order to earn her hand in marriage." I nodded and walked up to the bard while she stood by the door. The bard turned to me and looked me over.

"So, yet another believes he has what it takes to marry Nera." He said. I nodded. "Well, good luck. I'll be the one to earn the right to marry her. Nera and I are meant for each other, I just know it." He looked at me for a moment. He held out his right hand. "Sincerely though, I wish you luck." I took his hand and shook it as he smiled. "I am Crispin Burns."

"I'm Milliardo Gotha, but everyone calls me Ace." I said.

"Because you're lucky?" He asked. I nodded. "Well, perhaps that will help you, but perhaps it won't. All the luck in the world won't stand between me and my dear Nera." The door ahead of us opened and the men ahead of us walked in. "Ah, Mr. Briscoletti is ready to explain."

He turned and walked while I followed, my staff now held carefully so it wouldn't stain the floor, and I wished that I had changed into a decent pair of shoes. I walked in and sat down on a chair and saw the man I recognized from many years ago, Mr. Briscoletti. He looked at each of us in turn, though his gaze didn't linger on me any longer than Crispin, though he only gave the other two half the time.

"I am glad to see you all here." He said. He took a deep breath and smiled. "You are all here to try to win the hand of my little bambina Nera." We all nodded, though I was reluctant at first. "To do this, you must first pass a test to prove you are worthy. To the south east of here is a mountain, a volcano to be exact. Deep within the heart of this volcano is a ring, the Circle of Fire." There was a bit of quiet chatter among the other two, but Crispin and I were quiet. "And there is another ring, the Circle of Water. Once you bring me both rings, you shall have my little bambina's hand in marriage." Nera suddenly ran down the stairs.

"Wait, this is not fair." She said. "It is too dangerous. I couldn't stand any of you getting hurt because of me." She looked at me for a moment. "Milliardo?" Crispin looked at me, as did everyone else. I waved politely as her father looked between us.

"You know this man?" He asked. She blushed and nodded. He looked at me.

"He, stopped Bingo from running away a little while ago." She said quietly. She looked at her father. "But, papa, I should be allowed to choose my own husband. It's not fair to have you choose my husband, and basing it on some, treasure hunt." He stood up and walked over to her.

"Nera, we need to talk." He said kindly. She nodded silently. He turned to the four of us. "You should get started. I doubt the Circle of Fire will be easy to get to." He walked up the stairs and Nera followed, sparing a moment to look back at me. The others got up as she walked away.

"Man, a ring in a fiery mountain?" The muscular guy asked. "That sounds like it ought to be the subject of a book series or something."

"The heart of a volcano?" The other asked. "There must be a way to get to it safely. I'll need a lot of supplies, and a big plan to do it." Crispin stood up and put his right hand to his chin. He walked past me as I began thinking.

"This will indeed be difficult." He said. I looked up at him. "But, love will come through for the one destined to marry Nera." He held his right hand in front of him and made a shaking fist. "For Nera, I would bring back the whole volcano on my shoulders for her hand in marriage." He looked at the ceiling. "For Nera, I would do anything. I would even fight the mightiest monsters and Demons for her." I stood up and he looked to the area in front of him. "I'd do anything for her."

"Good luck Crispin." I said. He nodded.

"And to you as well Milliardo Gotha." He said. "One of us for sure will get the rings, and one of us will have her hand. The others stand no chance to the power of my passion, and your good fortune. We will be the only two who can manage this monumental task." I nodded.  
…

I stretched as the wagon approached the bottom floor of the volcano. It had been painful, but we had defeated dozens of monsters, gaining us thousands of gold coins, putting us at an even twenty thousand. We had burned our feet, except for Goolia who stayed on the wagon. The wheels were burned slightly, but the lava didn't stick long enough to cause any fire to start. I had to use my Swoosh spell to keep us cool. Crispin was at the top floor, hurt slightly by monsters and hesitant to keep going. I kept hoping he was okay, but he looked like he could handle himself. He was armed with scale armor and a bronze shield with a copper sword. He looked like he would be fine.

"Milliardo?" Goolia asked. I looked at her as I walked along to the right of the wagon. "Are you sure we need to goo this? I mean, it's hot, and it's dry, and there's fire, and there's monsters, and we're in big danger all the time here. Can't we just try to barter the shield from Mr. Briscoletti?" I shook my head.

"No, he doesn't seem the kind of guy that would part with that shield for trinkets." I said. "He won't change his mind now that he's made it up, so I have to get the rings and marry Nera to get the shield. If I don't, we won't be able to keep it safe for the Hero when the time comes. We'll have all the equipment, and he'll find us, and we'll help him so we can find my mom." I sighed and wiped my forehead with my left arm. "We have to do this, so we can save my mom. If we don't, my father's trust in me and his sacrifice will have all been in vain. I can't do that now, not when we're so close to the shield."

"But if you marry her for anything but *clank* love, then it won't be right." Sir Rusty said. I nodded.

"I'll try to love her." I said. "I'll try to be worthy of her love, and most importantly, I'll have somewhere I can call home again. My old hometown of Whealbrook was destroyed, and I don't think Coburg is a place I could truly call home. If I marry Nera, I can come back to Monstroferrato when I need to think, and I'll have someone to come back to, someone I can talk to about anything." I looked ahead somberly. "I really think I could love her as well. She's nice, I know that, and she seems like a good person with a kind soul. I have to marry her, but that doesn't mean I have to not love her." He clanked along as we neared a rock with something glowing in it, something red. "This looks like it might be the Circle of Fire." The wagon stopped as Goolia and Saber jumped out. I had fully healed us since our last battle. We walked up to the rock and I saw a gold ring with a tiny red orb. I went to grab it when a field repelled me. I stepped back and I heard a bubbling sound. I looked to my right as a creature rose out of the magma. We had seen something that Sir Rusty called Hotbogs, but these were made of pure magma. The Hotbogs were dried out magma monsters that weren't very tough on their own. "What is that thing?"

"That is a Magman." Sir Rusty said. "It is a being born of pure *clank* magma, but they always travel in sets of three. Magmen they are called when they *clank* team up." I looked to my left and saw another. I stepped back further as a third appeared. They gathered around the rock and made crude growling and bubbling noises. "They can burn you on direct touch, and they have a habit of *clank* belching flames. Avoid prolonged contact if you can *clank* manage, but press the attack or they will overwhelm you." I drew my sword and readied the shield. "What is the plan?"

"You and I team up on the left one, and I'll stick to magic when I can." I said. "Goolia, you and Saber use your weapons to take out the one on the right."

"Goo got it Milliardo." She said. I readied the sword in front of me as Saber and Goolia ran toward the one on the right. She hopped onto Saber for what I saw as an assisted strike. I ran forward as Sir Rusty moved closely to my right.

I jumped into the air and turned, slamming the blade down through the Magman and quickly withdrawing it, swinging hard to sweep away the magma that stuck to my father's sword. Sir Rusty sliced through with both of his swords, making the Magman blast him with flames. He jumped back and swung the blades as I readied a Swoosh. I turned to the third Magman and hit it with the full force. It shot back the flames it had just belched into its face, and it was scattered slightly, though it slowly began pulling itself together. I swung the sword back into the one in front of me, figuring that the sword had cooled down enough. I hit something along the way, though I only just felt it. The Magman roared and hardened, falling into a pile of ashes after a few seconds as I turned to the third.

"Sir Rusty, help Goolia and Saber." I said. "There's something inside them that holds them together, in the middle, probably behind the mouth." I heard him clank a salute as I spun the sword over my right wrist. I stepped forward, a Swoosh spell ready in my left hand. The expected burst of flame came at me and I Swooshed it back at the Magman, splattering it again. I saw a glowing red stone, the item that held it together I figured. I ran forward as it began getting covered in the magma. I stabbed at it and heard the roar, as well as one from the other. I pulled the sword back and swung it again as the magma became volcanic ash like the others. I swung it hard, sweeping the ashes off of it. I spun it over my wrist again and slowly sheathed it. "Okay, that's one ring down, and one to go." Sir Rusty nodded as Goolia hopped back onto Saber's back again. I looked at the ring and moved my hand to it. "If a big dragon comes out of that magma, I swear to the Goddess that I am going to bring this whole volcano down on it."  
…

I walked into the town with the ring tucked into a small pouch on my right hip. There was no dragon thankfully, but there were a lot of monsters on the way out. We had acquired an additional five thousand gold coins on the way out, along with a Chimera Wing and a few healing herbs and some herbs I could use for antidotes. I looked up at the sky for a moment and thought it might be a bit late to go to Mr. Briscoletti. I yawned and turned my gaze to the inn and turned to walk over.

'I guess this should wait until Mr. Briscoletti has a good night's rest.' I thought. I walked over to the inn and opened the door. 'I just hope Nera can see fit to give me a chance. She certainly seems like a good person.' I walked in and saw the innkeeper throwing punches. He seemed excited, and I recognized him as the muscular man from the mansion. I'd have to keep the ring a secret. It wasn't an issue of trust, but he seemed like he was very interested in Nera, so I'd just have to be careful. He turned to see me and he put his right arm on the table.

"Hey pal, no luck with the volcano?" He asked. I shrugged.

"Lots of cash, Staff of Antimagic, some interesting treasure, the usual stuff you'd find in a cave." I said. I wasn't lying, because the ring was an interesting treasure. He nodded.

"Well, better luck tomorrow then I guess." He said. I nodded. "You know, I've come to a conclusion about Nera. She's a good, sweet girl, and I know she deserves someone a heck of a lot better than me and that shopkeeper. That Crispin's a good bloke, and you seem an alright sort." I smiled slightly, rubbing the back of my head. "I'd rather her be happy with you or him than have her be miserable with a bloke like me, or a joker like the shopkeeper."

"That's really noble of you." I said. He nodded.

"I may be a big guy with big muscles, but my heart is in the right place." He said. "So, will you be stayin' the night?" I nodded. "Well, for a friend, five gold is all I can charge." I nodded and put the five coins in his right hand. "Good luck friend. I wish you the best."

"Thanks." I said.  
…

I stretched as I walked down the street. I had the ring ready as I walked up to the mansion. I spent a few hours thinking the night before, mostly about what I was doing. I kept thinking about Nera for a few hours, but eventually my thoughts drifted to Bianca. I tried to imagine what she would look like after ten years, but I couldn't imagine my best friend. I remembered what she looked like as a kid, but I couldn't think of her as she would be now. I just couldn't imagine what she'd look like now. I walked up to the door and I heard a bark. I turned to my left and saw Bingo wagging his tail as he looked up at me. I knelt down and pet his head for a few minutes. His tail wagged faster and I smiled.

"Good boy." I said. He barked and I stood up. I looked at the door and then up. I saw Nera on a balcony looking out at the town. The sun was just coming up and her hair was shining in the morning light. I found myself unable to move as she stared out at the town. She looked worried, but she was very beautiful nonetheless. She leaned forward and put her arms on the rail and sighed. She said something but I couldn't hear her. I shook my head and looked at the door. I knocked and a maid opened it.

"Ah, Mr. Gotha, I'd heard you were back." She said. "Are you here to talk to Mr. Briscoletti?" I nodded.

"Yes, I managed to get the Circle of Fire." I said. She stared for a moment.

"Really?" She asked. I nodded. "Well, you're certainly skilled for getting past all the dangers in that volcano. I'd heard stories about creatures called Magmen guarding the Circle of Fire, were they true?" I nodded again.

"They were true." I said. "I approached the ring and they attacked. It's a good thing I know how to fight, or I probably might not have made it back." She smiled again and stepped back.

"I'm sure Mr. Briscoletti will be happy to see you have the ring then." She said. "Please, come in. I'll go alert him."


	9. A promise made, and a story to be told

**I'm really loving this fic. I loved the game, I loved the storyline of the game, and I love writing this fic. I put a lot of hard work into it, and hard work means good work. More effort means more time spent and more time trying to make it as good as it can get.**

**Disclaimer: Square Enix owns the rights to Dragon Quest. I do not own the rights to Dragon Quest. So, is everybody on the same page? Does everyone get that I don't have the rights to Dragon Quest? Good. We now return you to our regularly scheduled program, already in progress. Thank you for your patience.  
…**

"So, you have brought to me the Circle of Fire?" Mr. Briscoletti asked in a surprised tone. I nodded and pulled the ring out of the pouch. He stared at it as I held it out to him. He moved his hands out and I set it gently in his right palm. "Amazing, simply amazing my friend, you are the maestro of battle, I know this for certain." I smiled and blushed slightly.

"Well, I picked up a few things in my travels." I said. He smiled and put the ring in the right chest pocket of his jacket.

"Well, I'd say you might just have what it takes." He said. "I'm sure she'll be happy with you. She's been talking about you, and nothing but good things." He smiled and put his right hand on my right shoulder and walked past me. I turned and walked with him toward a window on the north side of the room. He gestured to a ship visible on the river. "She says that she is willing to give you a chance, but if she does not truly love you, then you will no longer be married." He looked at me. "But she seems to like you a lot. She says it's your eyes; they make her feel calm when she looked into them when you stopped Bingo." I nodded, remembering how we stared into each other's eyes. "And Bingo took a shine to you as well, so she believes you are a good person. And I know this as well my friend." I looked at him and he had a quizzical look. "You know, I have yet to learn you name. I should know the name of the man that may become my son in law. Nera never mentioned your name, despite how much she said."

"Ah, I guess none of us had a chance to introduce ourselves." I said. "My name is Milliardo Gotha, though just about everyone calls me Ace." He stared. "But, she did say my name when I came here before, after she came downstairs."

"Gotha?" He asked. "As in, the son of Pankraz Gotha?" I nodded. "By the Goddess, I thought you looked familiar. You're the little boy from the ship all those years ago, the little bambino that followed maestro Pankraz." I nodded again, blushing slightly. "This explains it then. When I had dinner that night, both of my little bambinas told me that a little boy talked to them, and when they looked into his eyes they felt so calm." He laughed quietly. "Little Nera, she told me that she wanted to talk to you for a little bit longer, and I think they both had a little crush on you. Now that you are back, Nera does not recognize you, but the way you make her feel has stayed with her all these years. I would say she still has that little crush on you, but I must ask, do you like my little girl?" He looked out the window at the ship. "Would you be a loving husband for her? Would you make regular trips back here? I heard you are looking for your mother, so I know you will be travelling a lot, but I must know that you will be at my bambina's side as often as you can manage." I thought about it and nodded.

"I'll make all the time she deserves and more." I said. "It wouldn't be fair to her if I married her and just left her here alone for months on end." He nodded. "My dad wouldn't have left my mom alone for a single week if he could help it; I know that to be true. I made a personal vow that if I ever got married, I'd love my wife just as much as my dad loved my mom." He smiled. "I would never break that vow, just as I would never break Nera's heart." He patted my back and laughed heartily.

"Then all that is left is for you to get the Circle of Water and bring it back to me." He said. "Now, just as the Circle of Fire was in a cave of fire, would it not make sense for the Circle of Water to be someplace wet?" I nodded. "There is a cave to the far north of here, behind a waterfall. The ship you see is for you to use to get there. The captain knows where to go, but you may tell him to go wherever you wish him to go." He looked at me. "Milliardo, I heard rumors that Crispin was hurt, and I loved that boy like a son. He has been friends with my little Nera for so long. I hope with every bit of my heart and soul that you do not end up the same, for I know it would break my little girl's heart." He sighed. "Hearing that her friend was hurt trying to win her hand, she is so sad. If it weren't for a travelling priest, he would have been a goner, so she told me that she wanted me to stop you." He looked at me. "I know that you are strong enough to get the other ring, because you came back unharmed. I know you are very strong, and very capable. I want only the best for my Nera, because I love her so much." He looked at me. "I should tell you." He looked at the stairs for a moment. "Nera and Debora, they are not my real daughters. They were orphans that I took in. They were still babies, and my wife and I could never have children of our own." He looked at me. "I have never told them, so they do not know. I just want them to be happy, and I want them to have a man that loves them."

"I'd do whatever it takes to be that man for her." I said. He nodded.

"Hurry Milliardo." He said. "Get to the ship, get the Circle of Water, and come back here to marry Nera." He laughed again. "I bet it won't take you a week considering it took you only three days to bring me the Circle of Fire. But I hear that you spent the night at the inn. Why did you wait?"

"I didn't want to keep you up." I said. "I figured you'd either be eating dinner or taking some time to talk to Nera." He smiled.

"You are polite, strong, and a good man." He said proudly. He patted my back again and I smiled. He had a fatherly air about him that felt familiar, like how my father acted around me. "As far as I am concerned, you are already my son, my bambino. And I am proud to call you so. Anytime you need to rest, you come back here and you can sleep in the guest house outside." I smiled wider. He patted my back twice. "You should hurry though, as time waits for no man, no matter how strong he is." I nodded as he moved his arm back. I stepped back from the window. He pulled out a letter and held it out to me. I took it in my right hand and looked at it. "Give this to the captain and he will know I sent you. He will consider you the maestro of the vessel. I will see you soon, Ace." I put the envelope in my shirt and nodded.

"Thanks, dad." I said. He laughed and I smiled. "I'll be back in a few days." I turned and walked to the main door as the maid bowed politely. I nodded and opened the door. As I stepped out I heard a quiet gasp. I looked up and saw Nera looking at me. I stared up at her and she stared at me. I held my left hand so that she could see it and I waved at her. She waved down at me.

"You, you're back." She said. I nodded. "And, you brought, the Circle of Fire?" I nodded again. She made a sad moaning sound. "So you're going to find the Circle of Water now."

"I am." I said. "For you." She stared and I figured she was probably blushing. "I'll be back soon Nera, I promise. And I won't be hurt." She nodded. "I'll see you in a few days."

"Milliardo, please be careful." She said. "I, I don't want anyone else getting hurt because of me." I smiled.

"I'll be careful Nera." I said. "I won't get hurt."  
…

I walked up to the captain and he stared. I pulled out the letter and handed it to him. He read it for a moment and looked at me. He put the letter away and saluted me.

"We're ready to set sail at any time you want sir." He said. I nodded and turned to Dusty and Sir Rusty, who sat on the bench with the reins. I stepped aside as the captain did as well. "Is that your brother?"

"That is Sir Rusty." I said. "He's a suit of Restless Armor." The captain gasped. "Yes, he's a monster, but he's a very good friend of mine. I have a Slime in the wagon named Goolia as well, so I hope you don't have a problem with tamed monsters on the ship." He shook his head. "Good, because I also happen to have a Great Sabrecat in there." He blinked and I whistled. Saber jumped out as the wagon passed and walked up to me. I put my right hand on his head and he purred quietly. "See? He's as tame as any housecat, but he's also a great help in battle. If we get attacked by any monsters, my friends will be able to help me send them off." He nodded as Saber started walking up the boarding plank. I gestured for the captain to board and he did so, but slowly out of obvious fear of Saber. "He won't hurt you captain. He's as tame as a housecat when he's not in battle. He'll let you pet him if you want." He looked back and then at the large cat ahead of him.  
…

I leaned on the railing at the aft end of the ship, looking at Monstroferrato. My thoughts however were on Nera's sister. I had caught a glimpse of her at the mansion before I had left. She had a certain beauty about her that I hadn't seen anywhere else. Physically, she was, as a fellow slave had once said, absolutely drop dead gorgeous and then some. She had messy hair, but it worked for her, making her seem like she didn't worry what others thought about her, but the roses said she didn't mind keeping up a certain appearance. Her dress looked about half a size too small, which made her large chest more noticeable. One of the men had seen her as well, and he stared while he walked directly into the door. She was definitely beautiful, but I noticed she seemed somewhat conceited. Normally I wouldn't like a girl like that, but I felt like she wasn't really that way. She seemed like she just wanted some attention. She had complained that she didn't want to get married, but something in her eyes told me the opposite. And when Mr. Briscoletti told her that we were there for Nera, she seemed slightly dejected, though she didn't show it for longer than a passing half second. I saw many people acting dejected, so I knew it when I saw it in her face and eyes. She said she didn't want to get married, but I knew she did, just not to anyone she didn't think would give her the attention she wanted.

"Sir Milliardo!" The captain called suddenly. I turned and looked up. "There's a bit of a problem up ahead. You should probably take a look at this." He pointed ahead and I turned to the starboard, or the right. I was on the port, or left, side of the ship. I saw a massive gate ahead of us and the ship was stopping and putting the sails away. "What should we do? I've never seen this before." I looked to the right of the gate and saw a town.

"There is probably someone in that town that has a key or something to get this open." I called. "I'll go ashore head over there and take a look. I should be back tomorrow at the latest." He saluted as several men prepared a small boat for me. Sir Rusty walked up to me.

"What shall I do?" He asked.

"You'll be coming with me." I said. "Goolia and Saber should be able to handle any attackers." He nodded and we started walking toward the boat. The men saluted and I nodded. Sir Rusty stepped on and I followed.  
…

We walked into the village and I looked around. Sir Rusty walked forward, toward a small cave that had the sign of the item shop guild on it. He would usually take some money and buy any items he thought we'd need or things he thought would be otherwise helpful. I walked forward and saw a girl praying. She seemed familiar somehow. She had long blond hair in a single braided ponytail with a ribbon at the end. She wore a blue dress and an orange cape tucked into her belt. I walked past her and toward the inn. I figured that would be the best place to start. I walked up the steps and opened the door. I smelled something pleasant in the air, and I looked to my left before I entered. I saw a large spring with three people bathing. It looked very nice, and I wondered if I would have time to take a bath. It had been a few days since I left Coburg, and I had sweat a lot in the volcano. I knew I probably smelled a bit ripe. I walked in and saw a few people look at me before returning to what they were doing. I walked forward, my staff making a small tapping sound with each step. People from the spring walked in. There were three, meaning that the spring was now empty. I walked up to the innkeeper and he turned to me with a polite smile.

"Hello." He said. "We don't get travelers often, so welcome to Stockenbarrel." I smiled.

"Thank you." I said.

"Will you be staying the night?" He asked.

"I'm not sure yet." I said. "I'm actually trying to get through that gate to the east of here. I was wondering if you knew of anyone that knows how to open it." He nodded.

"There's a house at the north end of town." He said. "The old man that lives there has a daughter that says she knows how to open it." I smiled and nodded. "Say, while you're in town, perhaps you'd like to try our spring. There's not a bath more soothing than our hot spring. You'll feel the aches of battle wash away along with any dirt and battlefield grime."

"I was actually thinking about that." I said. "Maybe later if I have some time." He nodded.

"I'll keep a towel ready for you." He said. "And lucky for you, my turban wearing friend, we have them in purple." I laughed as he smiled. "I hope you find someone to open the gate, but it wouldn't hurt to stick around for a while."  
…

I knocked on the door of the house and I heard a familiar cough from within.

"Come in." A male voice called. The voice, too, was familiar. "Mind you, I'm a bit under the weather, again." I opened the door and walked in. Sir Rusty was still in the item shop, but he knew to meet me outside the inn. It was something I told him to do since he wandered off now and again to do some equipment shopping in some towns. I took a few steps and looked around slowly. "Over here, in the room to your right." I turned to the right and walked in. The man coughed again and I saw him. The mustache, the orange outfit, the cough, I knew this man from my childhood. He sat up and looked at me for a moment. "Oh, I thought you were one of the…" He stared at me.

"Mr. Whitaker." I said quietly.

"Milliardo Gotha." He said. He smiled. "By the Goddess, it is you. The pint sized purple prophet's all grown up now." He struggled to get out of bed but I walked over to him and he settled back on the bed. "It's good to see a familiar face, though you've changed a bit. That's a scar I don't remember you having." I put my left hand to it for a moment.

"Oh, this is no big deal." I said. "I got that a few years ago." He laughed quietly.

"So, what brings you all the way out here?" He asked. "I bet your dad's still looking for your mum, am I right?" I looked away slowly and I heard him make a small sound. "Oh, is, is he?" I nodded. "I'm sorry, I had no idea. I never heard a thing. I knew that Whealbrook was, but, I thought for sure your dad would have made it out alive."

"He, he did, but, there was a, an accident." I said. "A few things happened in Coburg, and we went to this cave, and, this guy, he kidnapped me after…" I put my left hand on the hilt of the sword and he nodded slowly.

"So, all these years you've been, what, a slave?" He asked. I nodded. "I'm sorry Milliardo, I truly am. I, I lost my wife a few years ago. I always thought I'd have gone first, but it was her." I nodded again. "I had to come here because the spring was supposed to make me better, but she caught this nasty cold and, she, well she couldn't take it."

"I'm sorry for your loss." I said. He shook his head.

"No, it's me that's sorry for you." He said. "I heard you saved the guy that made the herbs for me all those years ago, and it's thanks to you that I got here. And to top that you helped Bianca in Uptaten Tower. She wasn't always the most confident child, but thanks to you she got up the nerve to do things she never had the guts to do before then." He smiled. "Thanks to you, Bianca became a stronger person, and you saved the man that got me my medicine, and you never asked for anything in return. I owe you a lot Milliardo, and if there's anything I can do for you, say the word and I'll do whatever I have to do to help." I rubbed the back of my head for a moment.

"Well, speaking of help, I do need something right now." I said. He nodded. "I need to get to a cave to the north of here, and there's this giant gate keeping me from getting there. I heard that, well I heard that Bianca knows how to open it." He nodded.

"Yeah, she found the lever that opens it." He said. "I'll talk to her when she gets home, and I'll tell her you need the lever to get to where you're going." I nodded and the door opened.

"Dad, I'm home." A female voice said. I heard footsteps and I turned to see the girl who had been praying. She stared at me for a moment as Mr. Whitaker sat up.

"Ah, Bianca, look who's come to visit." He said. She stared. "You'll never guess who this young fellow is."

"Ace?" She asked. Mr. Whitaker laughed while I nodded.

"Hello Bianca." I said. "Long time no see." She blushed.

"No kidding." She said. "I thought I'd never see you again."

"Well, I guess I'll leave you two to catch up." Mr. Whitaker said. He yawned and I turned to see him laying his head on his pillow. "I could use a nap about now anyway." I laughed quietly as he yawned again. "You two play nice now, but not too nice." Bianca was blushing when I turned back to her.

"Dad, we haven't seen each other in ten years." She said. "It's not like he was my boyfriend back then." He started snoring and I laughed quietly. "Oh, for crying out loud, he does that every time I try to defend myself from him." I laughed a bit louder and she sighed. "So, what brings you all the way out to the sticks?" She turned and walked toward what I had seen to be the kitchen so I followed slowly.

"Well, I wish I could say it was to catch up with you." I said honestly. "But I'm here on, well, a bit of an errand." She walked up to the stove and turned, leaning her elbows against a counter. I set my staff against a wall and pulled a chair over to me and sat down. "I guess I should start at the beginning. When I was a kid, you remember my dad was looking for something?"


	10. The things I do for love, are difficult

**This is my second update this week, and it's a lot earlier than most of you out there would imagine I'd bet. Oh well, it's not for any of you to worry about. I'm still taking requests, and I need that to be known over all else. However, I've decided that I'll take no more than five at a time from now on. I've got three so far, and I'm nearly done with the first as of this chapter update, and it ought to be posted in the next few hours, maybe around seven, so you ought to see it by five the earliest, eleven at the latest if all goes well.**

**Now for a personal note, you might think things are winding to a close for Ace's life as a loner. You'd be right. He's getting dang close to getting married at this point, and all he needs is the Circle of Water. After that, well, anyone that's played the game through far enough knows what happens then. To those of you that don't, upon getting the Circle of water and bringing it to Mr. Briscoletti, you are presented with a sudden problem. You can choose to marry either Nera Briscoletti, or you can marry Bianca Whitaker. You spend a night choosing between them, talking to the townsfolk, Bianca, and you check up on Nera while she sleeps. This must make you wonder about where I'm going with this fic. Well, 'you'll see' is all I can say.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Dragon Quest. That honor belongs to Square Enix. Capiche?  
…**

I had talked to Bianca for a few hours and she had listened in awe. I didn't spare a single detail I could remember, and she nearly had tears in her eyes at the sad parts.

"So, pretty much, now I'm heading to a cave to get a ring." I said. "And once I have that, I guess I'm getting married." She nodded slowly as I chuckled. "I have to say, there has _got_ to be an easier way to get married." She giggled.

"But easy never was your style." She said. "I mean, 'Faerie Lea'?" I blushed.

"Hey, would I lie about that?" I asked defensively. "I'm not kidding, that really happened. I went to Faerie Lea, fought the Winter Queen, brought back the Herald of Spring, and I helped usher in the season that year." She smiled.

"I know, I'm just saying it wasn't easy for you." She said. I wasn't convinced that she believed me though.

"So anyway, I need the lever to open the gate to get to the cave." I said. "If I don't get past the gate, I'll have to find a way to move the ship around or over it or I'll have to find another way to open or just destroy the gate." She smiled.

"I'll do you one better Ace." She said. "I won't give you the lever, but I'll use the lever to open the gate, and I'll go with you to get the ring." I opened my mouth and she giggled. "Hey, what're friends for? You helped my dad, and then you helped me in Uptaten to save Saber. And with all the stuff that's happened to you over the years, I think you've more than earned a helping hand." I smiled as she giggled again. "With all you've done for me and my dad, this is the least I can do for my old friend."

"Thanks Bianca." I said. "It's good to know I've still got some friends. After the things I've been through, I need someone to talk to." I chuckled. "You know, I actually feel a bit better now that I've told you my story. And, speaking of stories, I've got something that I know you'll laugh at." I put my hand in my bag and pulled out the book I'd found at the house. She stared at it as I handed it to her. "Go ahead and read the first few words." She opened it and looked at the page.

"Once upon a time…" She said slowly. Her eyes went wide and she looked up at me. "No way, you didn't just give me _this_ book." I nodded.

"I did." I said.

"No way, you couldn't have gotten this." She said. "Your village burned down."

"It did, and that's _the_ book." I said with a widening smile.

"No, no way in the world." She said. I nodded. "You got someone to give you a copy of it."

"Hey, I couldn't read when I was six." I said. "And no way would I be able to memorize a book I'd never been able to read, especially when I was a slave when my village burned down." She stared at the book.

"Where did you find this?" She asked.

"In the ruins of my old house." I said. "I found it and read those words. I remembered them for one reason, and that reason, was because when you were eight, two years older than I was at the time." I pointed at her. "_You_ called that difficult reading." She blushed deeply. "I know I couldn't read at all, but you couldn't read the words 'once upon a time', and you gave up." She tossed the book and I caught it easily as I laughed. She giggled quietly for a moment before we stopped. "I knew you'd remember this, and I knew you'd get a laugh out of it." She nodded as I sighed. "You know, considering the way our lives have gone, I'd say we're lucky that the gate is shut right now." She nodded. "If that gate was open, I'd never have come here, and we'd probably have gone our whole lives without seeing each other ever again." She smiled.

"Well, the Goddess works in mysterious ways." She said. She looked at the window to her left. "I should get started on dinner." She looked at me. "Say, I bet you're hungry for a home cooked meal. Ten years of slave gruel probably wasn't too good, and not many inns offer breakfast." I smiled. "Would you like to stay for dinner?"

"I wouldn't want to be a bother." I said.

"It's no trouble at all." She said. "We haven't had company for ages, and I know you're hungry by now. Tell you what; I'll be done in a couple of hours. I'll whip up somethin' special, so you go ahead and take care of whatever you need and I'll be done by the time you get back." I smiled and nodded.

"Okay then. " I said. "The thing is, there's not much I need to do that'd take a couple of hours. A friend of mine already took care of any supplies."

"Well, I didn't want to say anything earlier, but you could use a bath." She said. I snickered. "You smell like burning embers and sweat from that volcano. Go ahead and go to the spring. It's free, and you could use some time to yourself." I nodded as I stood up. "I'll be done in a bit, so take your time." She looked me over. "So, are you a vegetarian or can I cook some meat with this?"

"Go for it." I said. "I actually haven't had much meat in the past few weeks. I've been getting by on, well, Monster Munchies." She stared. "Hey, it wasn't my choice. I only buy enough food for a week and I go through that really quick. I travel a lot, sometimes for weeks, before I get to a town. I buy a month's worth of Monster Munchies, and I end up eating those by the time I get to a town." She giggled. "Say what you want, but they're filling." I looked away. "And they're not that bad after a few weeks."

"What?" She asked. I blushed and looked at her. I shrugged.

"After a few weeks, they're not that bad." I said. "It's not much more than bread that's been marinated in beef broth and dried out and sprinkled with seasonings. When you live off the things, you get to like them." She giggled and I shrugged again with a light blush. They actually were tasty after a few weeks of nothing else. "Well, I'll go clean up. I'll be back in a couple of hours."

"What about your friend?" She asked.

"Well, I'm not sure if he'll come or not." I said. I patted my pack. "He usually eats alone anyway."  
…

I settled into the water of the spring. I was alone, and I had plenty of silence to think. Sir Rusty would stay at the inn, so I gave him a pack of the Monster Munchies as he walked in. He didn't need to sleep, but he liked to think in a quiet room. I leaned back slightly into the warm water and the smooth rock I was sitting on. I felt the stress of the past few weeks rolling off into the water, along with the dirt from the volcano.

'This feels wonderful.' I thought. 'The bath I took at Coburg was good, but this is really nice.' I moved so that my head was the only part of me above the water. 'I'll have to take care not to fall asleep here.' I sighed as I began scrubbing at the dirt on my arms. The water loosened it, but I still had to wash it off. I was much more relaxed than usual, and the Circle of Water wasn't going anywhere. I smiled at how warm the water was, and it was nicer than the bathtub in Coburg because I had room to stretch out as much as I wanted. 'I'll have to remember to bring Nera here. I'm sure she'll like this.' I looked at the sky. I had a long time to bathe, and I'd be long done before that time would elapse. 'What should I do while I wait?' I started thinking while I continued scrubbing the dirt from my body. It vanished into the water, dispersing around me. I noticed that Bianca was acting a lot different than how she acted around me when we were kids. She seemed a bit down that I was going to marry Nera. A memory flashed before my eyes. When I was six Bianca had shown me around Roundbeck, and she had shown me into a bar. The waitress had asked me if she was my girlfriend, and Bianca had blushed before she looked away from me. 'Does she like me more than just as a friend?' I thought about her. She was very attractive, and she was my best friend when I was six. She was two years older than me though, making her eighteen. But that didn't matter to me. She always treated me as if we were the same age. And though I was six in Uptaten Tower, I protected her rather than having her protect me. Using only a copper sword and a boomerang, I kept her from being hurt by many of the monsters that were in the castle. 'Man, three girls coming into my life, and I have to marry Nera. What do I do? Marriage is for life, for love, and, my heart is torn between three different girls now.' I looked at the sky. 'One is kind and sweet, shy, and very lovely.' An image of Nera smiling appeared in my mind's eye. 'One is an old friend, who I care for dearly. She too is kind and sweet, and quite pretty.' Another image of Bianca, also smiling, appeared, standing next to Nera. 'And the third, not so kind or sweet, but, something about her makes my heart beat faster.' Debora appeared on the opposite side of Nera, but her smile wasn't quite so kind, but more like triumphant. I sighed and looked at the water. "So much for relaxing." I looked at the sky and saw that more time passed than I had realized. "Uh-oh, I'd better get ready." I stood up and grabbed the towel.  
…

I walked into Bianca's house and she had set the table, but I was still a little early. She turned from the stove and looked at me.

"Hey Ace, you're a bit early." She said. "Since you're here, can you see if my father wants to join us?" I nodded and walked in, closing the door behind me. I walked over to Mr. Whitaker's room and he yawned. He looked over at me and smiled.

"Hey Ace." He said quietly. "Could you come over here for a moment?" I nodded and walked over to him. He looked behind me and sighed. "Ace, I have something important to tell you, something I don't want Bianca to know about right now." I nodded and leaned in. His voice was a whisper. "Bianca, isn't my real daughter." I blinked. "My wife and I adopted her eighteen years ago. I couldn't tell her, I'm afraid it might break her heart." He sighed quietly. "But Ace, she likes you, a lot. I'd dare to say she might love you. Please, keep her safe." I nodded.

"I will." I said.

"And Ace, I overheard you say you will be getting married soon." He said. I nodded again. "I wish you the best, and I hope you make the choice that is right in your heart." I nodded slowly. "And, I don't think I'll be eating dinner tonight. My stomach's a bit upset."  
…

I stretched as I got off of the guest bed. Bianca had let me stay at her house that night, and after the dinner she had made, I didn't think I could have made it to the inn anyway. I stood up and grabbed my staff. I walked out of the room and into the main room where Bianca was packing her equipment, and I saw a whip with thorns among the various items. She turned her head to look at me as I put my left hand on the hilt of my father's sword.

"So, you still want to help me with this?" I asked. She nodded. "Thanks."

"No problem." She said. "After all, I still owe you for that crypt thing in Uptaten." I smirked and she giggled. "I talked to a friend about my dad. He'll keep an eye on him while I'm helping you."  
…

I stretched as Bianca put the lever into the proper position in the gate's locking mechanism. She tried to pull it back but it was stuck tight.

"Geeze, this thing's really rusted over." She said. "I think I'll need some extra muscle on this." I walked over and grabbed a lower spot on the lever. We pulled for a few moments, groaning loudly.

"Come on, let us through you lousy gate lever." I groaned. Finally it moved and we were thrown back when it slammed into place. I ended up on my back while Bianca ended up sitting. As we stood up the gate made a loud rumbling noise and opened slowly. I heard gears moving and clanking, chains pulling and clinking, and the muffled sound of the gate opening. "That's impressive. Big, slow, and overly dramatic, but impressive." Bianca giggled while Sir Rusty watched from the rowboat.  
…

I grabbed a boomerang from my pack and looked at it for a moment. It was old, but it didn't look like it would fall apart, and that meant that it would probably still fly if I threw it. I was at the front of the boat, and we still had a few hours before we'd arrive at the cave. It was the middle of the afternoon and Bianca was talking to Goolia and Sir Rusty. She wasn't even slightly afraid of them, and they'd quickly become friends. Saber however had jumped on her and licked her just like he licked me. I had just laughed while she fought to get the clearly happy Sabrecat off of her. I looked at the area ahead and then at the boomerang.

'I wonder if I've still got the arm for this thing.' I thought. I stepped back and got into my fighting stance. Dad had taught me how to use them but the one he gave me was lost, and it was a rare one to say the least. It was called the Flametang Boomerang, a boomerang that lit when thrown, but it never got hot. I threw it as hard as I could, putting as much as I could into the spin. It flew out straight ahead in a wide arc and turned to come back, spinning like nothing I'd ever seen apart from my Swoosh spell. I grabbed it and heard someone clapping. I turned to see Bianca looking at me with a smile. "Oh, hey." She looked at the boomerang as I spun it over my wrist and put it in my belt.

"You've still got it." She said. I laughed quietly and nodded.

"Well, once you learn how to fight, you never really forget." I said. "And two years of my dad teaching me isn't something I'd ever forget." She walked over to the side of the front rail and leaned forward, staring at the waterfall. I walked up beside her and leaned on my forearms.

"So, you really miss your father." She said. I nodded.

"Every day." I said. "Every morning I think about how it used to be. I'd wake up, my dad would be sitting at the table while Sancho cooked us a big breakfast." She nodded. She'd enjoyed such a breakfast one time when she was visiting Whealbrook. "There are so many things I'd be willing to give to get my dad back. I'd give just as much to have Whealbrook back to normal." She put her right hand on my back as I lowered my head. "That's why I have to do this. That's why I need to find the Zenithian equipment, the hero, and my mom. That was what my dad was trying to do when I was a child." I looked up at the cave. "For six years my dad traveled around the world to find the sword, and now I know where the shield is. That puts me one step closer to finding the hero, and one step closer to finding my mother."

"Ace, I'm sure your father is proud of you right now." She said. I smiled and looked at her. "You've gone through so much pain and trouble, and you're still able to keep going. So many men think that strength is in how big their arms are, or how much they can lift, or how far they can run, or how many drinks they can have before they pass out." She patted my back lightly. "But you have a strength they don't even have the slightest clue about." She looked at the cave ahead of us. "They all fight to prove who's the strongest among them, and they don't care about anything but proving themselves." She looked at me. "You fight to save someone important to you, and you know it's not all about you. All you want is to find your mother so you can help her." She patted my back again. "You're the strongest guy I've ever known, and your dad couldn't possibly be prouder of you."  
…

I walked ahead of Bianca, keeping an eye out for the local monsters. They weren't especially numerous, but they were annoying and had some decent magical attacks. I had my right hand on my staff as I walked along, the wood tapping the ground. We were nearing the bottom of the cave, and the ground was covered with water except for a few rocks.

"Wow, for a cave, this isn't so bad." Bianca said. I nodded as I walked, looking around slowly for movement. "So, were the other caves this big?"

"No." I said. "The cave with Saber had two floors and a small cavern in it, and the volcano had, four floors with a lot of magma." She walked closer as I looked around. I saw a set of stairs and we walked over to them. "Personally, out of the caves I've been in, I like this one over the others for scenery and temperature. It's not too hot, it's not too humid, and overall it's really nice. The monsters are good for training, and there's no end to surprises." We walked down the stairs and saw another waterfall.

"Wow, so many waterfalls, in a cave behind a waterfall." She said with a quiet laugh. "Yeah, it really is nice as far as caves go. But, now that we're here, and this looks like the final floor, where do we go?" I walked forward and looked down at the ground, seeing a reflection of a side cavern just behind the waterfall. "What is it Ace?"

"I think I know where to go." I said. I turned and saw Sir Rusty walking behind Bianca while Goolia sat on Saber's back. "There's a small entrance just below us."

"We shall wait here and keep *clank* our eyes open for monsters." Sir Rusty said. He gave a hollow laugh. "Aside from ourselves." Bianca and I laughed while he set his right hand on Saber's head. "You two can call *clank* if you need us." We nodded and Bianca walked around to a staircase while I just jumped down, landing with a splash. I looked up at her and she stared.

"Uh, I'll catch up then." She said. I rubbed the back of my head.

"Sorry." I said. "As much as I like the cave, I think we should hurry." She nodded and looked at the distance from where she was. I turned and started walking when I heard a splash behind me. I turned to see her walking over.

"Let's hurry then." She said. "No point in waiting." She walked past me and I stared at her. I felt my heart being torn at again and I felt concerned. I was torn between not only her and Nera, but between getting the shield and marrying Bianca. The way she acted wasn't like most of the women I'd seen in the towns. They acted they didn't know how to do any hard work, and from the bits of conversation I heard they were actually making their husbands do most of the work everywhere while they just worried about their hair and clothes. She wasn't worried about such small things, though she still looked lovely, and she wasn't afraid to get her hands dirty. "Ace, come on or I'm leaving you behind." I shook my head and started walking to catch up with her. "Did you hear a monster or something?"

"I was just thinking." I said. "I'm okay Bianca."


	11. A very rough night, making a choice

**Here we are, the big climactic event I bet you've all been waiting for. Chapter eleven, the longest one so far. Now, I'm sad to say that this is also the last official chapter of this fic. But I have a good reason and I am confident you will all see why when you reach the end of this chapter. I know that some of you have come to expect a lot of cliffhangers from me, and I've even been called skilled at the art of the cliffhanger. With this chapter, well, you'll see just why I've earned that praise.**

**I'd like to thank you all for reading this far, and I hope you all enjoy it thoroughly. I go through a lot of time and hard work to write these fics, and I write them for all of you. I started this some time ago, thinking hard about where I wanted it to go. That lead to something of a personal challenge I never realized I set up, and come next week, there will be no update of Dragon Quest V: Ace's Journey. What there will be, should more than make up for it. Keep an eye out for it, because I'm sure you won't want to miss it.**

**Disclaimer: I, Lord Genesis Shadow, do not own the rights to Dragon Quest. Square Enix does, and they do a wonderful job of making excellent games for many to enjoy. I now return you to your regularly scheduled reading.  
…**

I walked into the room within the cave and saw the ring on a large stone and there were no signs of monsters. I looked around for a moment while Bianca walked up to the ring. She looked around it and didn't seem to worry.

"So, this was when those Magmen attacked you in the volcano?" She asked. I nodded and walked forward, putting my staff on my back and drawing the sword. "What are you doing? Do you hear any monsters in here?" I shook my head but turned around completely as I walked, readying a Swoosh spell. She laughed quietly as I approached the ring. I moved my right hand to it while looking around. "There aren't any monsters in here. I can see that much." I moved the sword to my left hand and my right hand to the ring.

"I don't like being caught off guard." I said. I moved my index finger and thumb to the ring and gently grabbed it. There was a bit of energy that released from the stone and I looked around and saw Bianca doing the same. I looked around and then at the ring. I raised my eyebrows and no doubt I had a pleasantly surprised look. "Well, I'd have to say that we have no worries." I grabbed the ring and picked it up from the stone. I looked at it and whistled. The gem was round, perfectly smooth, and I felt powerful magical energy within. I tilted my head as I looked into it. "You know, I've never seen jewelry besides the Circle of Fire, and it had an energy just like this one." I looked at Bianca to see her staring at the ring.

"Man, I think I'm a bit jealous of that Nera gal." She said. "She's getting this beauty of a ring, she's marrying my best friend. That's it. I'm jealous." She patted my back and laughed, though I had a feeling that it was forced. "I wish I had me a guy that was willing to get me a ring like this." She looked at me and forced a smile. She had feelings for me, and that made it more painful in my heart. My feelings for three girls made things so difficult for me. I wanted to marry Nera, I wanted to marry Bianca, and some small part of me wanted to marry Debora. Nera was beautiful, and she was the one I told her father I would marry. But her sister seemed so lonely, having to put up a tough front to try to get attention, and I felt like I had that in common with her. I was constantly lonely and I too had to put up a front almost all the time. My reason though was because I didn't want anyone to worry about me. Sure I had Harry while we were slaves, but I was still lonely for a friend now that he was gone. And Bianca, she was my best friend from when we were children. After catching up with her a couple of nights ago, I felt something in my heart for her that I never noticed. "Ace, hello buddy, you're out of it again." I let my eyes focus to see her giving me a worried look. "Are you okay Ace? You've been acting a bit odd lately."

"I'm fine Bianca." I said. She jumped back slightly and put her right hand to her chest with a surprised look. "Sorry. I've just had a lot on my mind lately." She smiled and laughed for a moment.

"Yeah, I know." She said. "You've got your wedding to think about when you get back." I nodded slowly and she gave me a concerned look. "What's wrong?" I looked at her and shrugged.

"It's nothing." I said. "I'm just thinking about a few things." I smiled and waved her concerns off as I put the ring in my pocket. I put the sword in the scabbard and laughed quietly. "It's nothing to be concerned about." I turned. "We should get back to the ship. I've got a little trick to show off." She nodded and walked with me to the exit. Sir Rusty and the others were waiting patiently. "Anything happen while we were in there?"

"Not a thing." Goolia said. "This area feels kind of weird to us. It's like some kind of energy is trying to keep us out of here." She looked around from Saber's back. "I really want to get out of here." Sir Rusty nodded.

"Yes, this place feels *clank* ominous to even me." He said. "And I was once *clank* human." I nodded and walked up to him and Bianca walked over to me.

"Okay then." I said. I grabbed my staff and tapped the ground twice with it as Bianca watched. "Here's a little trick I picked up in my travels." I willed my magical energy forth and there was a flash of white for a few seconds, and when it faded we were near the boarding plank of the ship. Bianca looked around as I stretched. "The utility spell Evac. It's good for getting out of a cave when you need to get going in a hurry." She smiled as we turned to the ship. The captain was looking at us and he waved slowly. We waved back and he just stared. "Hello captain. We're ready to head back to Monstroferrato."

"Okay then." He said. "I'll uh, tell the crew."  
…

I stood in the center of the ship and stretched my arms.

"Are you totally sure about this spell?" The captain asked. I nodded and swung my arms out a few times.

"He's done this before, but never with something this big." Goolia said.

"What is he doing?" Bianca asked. "Ace, are you going to use Zoom?" I nodded again and emptied my mind before assuming the lotus position.

"This should be great training." I said. "I've never moved anything bigger than Dusty's cart with us in it. This should be a true test on how much I can move all at once." They all gathered and moved into likewise sitting positions.

"And you're sure this won't cause any problems for my ship?" The captain asked.

"Zoom always sets us down safely." I said. "There is a moment that you feel like you're going to hit the ground hard, but the second before you land you just stop. You hover for a second before slowly touching down. I don't think there should be any difference with a ship." They nodded as I emptied my mind almost completely. "Now, I need to focus. Any intrusive thoughts will cause me to just, take off myself or we'll just stay here and the ship will shake." They nodded and I closed my eyes, focusing my mind's eye on the place the ship had been when we left port four days ago. "Okay, I've got the focus." I inhaled deeply and let it out as I focused my magical energy. The image never wavered and I let the energy flow out onto the ship. I heard gasps but I kept my focus. "Is everyone ready?" There was a silence but I kept the image in my mind.

"We're ready Ace." Bianca said. "Let's go." I nodded and opened my eyes quickly as the ship suddenly took to the sky. The whole ship was covered in a thin layer of blue energy, which was similar to the cart, but I kept my focus for a few seconds more to make sure we would make it. When I felt confident we'd arrive at our destination I dropped the focus and let out a deep breath and started breathing again. I hadn't breathed much the whole time. "Ace, are you okay?" I nodded and held up my right hand, my thumb and index finger in the 'OK' gesture.

"Dandy." I said. "That's the most energy I've ever used for a spell in my whole life." I stood up calmly, grabbing the staff and leaning on it slightly. "Whoa, I guess I need to rest for a bit." I took a few steps, using the staff more than usual.

"Ace, are you sure you're okay?" Bianca asked. I nodded.

"I've been in worse shape." I said. "The slave drivers at Crocodilopolis drove me into worse shape than this. This is nothing." I walked over to the edge and looked down at the world beneath us. I looked to Monstroferrato and then the sky and did some math in my head. "I figure we'll land in about three or four minutes." Bianca walked over and gasped, and I heard dozens of sounds from others.

"Whoa, I, I can't believe this." She said. "We're actually on a flying ship! This is so cool!" She looked at me. "This is just amazing. I never dreamed I'd be on a ship, let alone a ship that flies through the air under magical power that my best friend revived." She looked at the ground and smiled. "This is so cool!" I smiled and looked at the ground.

"Yeah, I could never get tired of flying through the air like this." I said.  
…

I stretched as Bianca and I walked up to the mansion. She stared at it and stopped to whistle.

"I wish I could live in a place like this for just one day." She said quietly. "It would be so amazing to live just one day here." I nodded as I looked at the house. She looked at me. "You're a lucky guy Ace. Once you marry Nera, this is your new home. You can come back here whenever you want, and you can live here." She smiled and I knew she was forcing it. "So, let's go, let's get that ring to Mr. Briscoletti." I nodded as she walked in. She was smiling, but I thought she was probably fighting back tears. I walked up to the door and opened it and she walked in. I followed her into the main foyer and the maid walked up to us.

"Oh, welcome back Mr. Gotha." She said. I blinked and she smiled. "Mr. Briscoletti was just talking about you at the dinner table."

"Oh, well we can come back in the morning." I said. She shook her head and smiled.

"It's perfectly all right." She said. "He said that he wanted to talk to you anyway." She looked at Bianca. "Is this your sister perhaps?" Bianca blushed and shook her head.

"Oh, no, heavens no, I'm Bianca Whitaker." She said quickly. "I'm an old friend. I knew Ace when he was just a kid." The maid looked at me and then at her, but she kept smiling.

"Well then, I take it that you've retrieved the Circle of Water?" She asked. I nodded and she smiled wider. "Right this way then." She walked over to the door and opened it and we walked through. She followed and walked over to the kitchen area. We walked in and Mr. Briscoletti, his wife, and Nera looked over at us. Debora was nowhere in sight. The maid walked away and Mr. Briscoletti smiled.

"Milliardo my boy, you have returned." He said happily. He pushed his chair back and stood up. "And you have brought your sister." Bianca blushed again and I lowered my head.

"I, I'm not his sister." She said quietly. "I'm his friend, Bianca Whitaker." I laughed quietly and looked at her. "What?"

"Well, that's twice." I said. The Briscoletti family stared and I laughed. "The maid said the same thing when we came in." They looked at each other and laughed for a moment.

"So, you brought your friend to come to your wedding." Mrs. Briscoletti said. I nodded slowly.

"Kind of." I said. "It's a bit of a story, but the short version is that I needed to get a gate open to get to the cave that had the Circle of Water, Bianca had the way to open it, and she said she'd help me get the Circle of Water after she opened the gate."

"So, you have the Circle of Water?" Nera asked quietly. I nodded and grabbed the ring while Bianca stepped back slightly. I held it up and Mr. Briscoletti walked over and looked at it. I held it out to him and he took it.

"This is it; this is indeed the Circle of Water." He said. "Bravo, bravo my boy, you did it. I knew you could do it."  
…

I sat on the bed in the inn, thinking deeply over a sudden turn of events. I put my hands on my face and tried to force myself to sleep. So many things I had to consider over the past few days were now coming at me all at once. I lowered my hands to the bed and sighed. I looked at the ceiling thought of what had happened. Nera had realized what I had realized about Bianca. She had feelings for me, as did Nera, and Nera wanted me to marry Bianca because she didn't want to stand in the way. This caused yet more pain to my heart, because Nera was fully willing to let me go to another, to give up her chance at love for another. Bianca told me to choose Nera because she thought she wouldn't be a good enough wife for me. This made me realize that two girls I had known as a child wanted me to choose the other, so that the girl I chose and I would both be happy. They wanted me to make the other happy, and it caused my heart to pull itself apart all over again. I had tried to decide on the ship on the way to the ring, and again on the way back, but each time I hit the same wall. Nera was the girl I promised to marry, but Bianca was still close to me, and I had known her longer besides. Debora was a wild card in the equation, but since she didn't offer her hand I had no way of knowing how she felt about me. I swung my legs over the edge and put my arms on my legs and my hands on the sides of my head.

"Oh, what do I do?" I asked the shadows on the ground. "Why did it have to be this way?" I stared at the floor, my thoughts going from one girl to the other. Nera was so kind, so sweet, she was beautiful, and all she wanted was for me and Bianca to be happy together. Bianca was my best friend, someone I could trust to the ends of the world and back again a hundred times over, and I knew her well. She was just as kind, just as sweet, and she too had a beauty most men would pay just to see her smile. She was a bit rough around the edges, but she wanted me to marry Nera so I would be happy with her and she with me, and so I could get the shield to continue my journey. The shield itself was a factor, but marrying for just that reason would surely offend the Goddess, and it wouldn't make me happy to be so callous. I figured that if I chose Bianca, maybe, just maybe, I could convince Mr. Briscoletti to part with it, since I had such a noble reason to ask for it. And even if I couldn't, I could ask him to keep it safe until I returned with the hero. And I was sure he'd understand. 'Goddess, I know you work in mysterious ways, but why do you test me so? This was supposed to be easy at first, and even through the little curves you put in the way, I believed I could love Nera, and make sure that she knew I loved her and wasn't marrying her solely for that shield. Now, Bianca and I meet again, and she has feelings for me as well, and now I have to choose.' I looked at the ceiling. 'I don't know what to do Goddess. Please, give me a sign.' I looked at the door and saw a sliver of light leading to the door. I stood up. 'Maybe, maybe some fresh air will help me. And, maybe I can talk to Bianca and Nera.' I grabbed my staff and looked at it before setting it against the wall again. I walked to the door and opened it and walked a few steps before the person in the other room opened his door with a yawn. He looked at me and smiled.

"Hey, you're that Milliardo guy everyone's talking about." He said. I rubbed the back of my head with my right hand.

"Everyone?" I asked. "What did I do to get so famous all of a sudden?"

"Are you joking?" He asked. "You got both rings, and now you're stuck choosing between that Bianca Whitaker gal and Miss Nera. The maids at the Briscoletti house told a few people, and those people told other people, and now the whole town is talking about who you'll choose." I laughed quietly as he leaned against the door frame. "Man, I don't envy you on this. That maid said that you bravely chose to ignore Miss Nera's warning to go get the Circle of Water, that you'd be a good husband to her even though you had to look for that hero." I nodded. "And then you came back with Bianca Whitaker, and she has feelings for you. Now you've got this big choice on your hands." I sighed.

"I just don't know what to do." I said. "On one hand, I promised I'd get the ring for Nera, that I'd come back as often as I could to see her and be with her. On the other hand though, I knew Bianca when we were kids, back when I was six and she was eight. One way, I continue my journey with the shield, coming back here anytime I can spare the time, and the other way I have Bianca travelling with me but I won't have the shield." He nodded.

"Tell you what I would do." He said. "I'd choose both if I could." I laughed quietly. "But since that's not an option, I'd marry Nera. She's a sweet girl, and she's always gonna be understanding in your quest. She'd trust you not to have the wandering eye, and she wouldn't spend all the time you're gone worrying that you met some girl at some far off town or somethin' like that." I thought about his words, but they didn't help. I already knew she was a sweet girl, but she wouldn't have to worry about me anyway. "Maybe you should talk to them, and the townsfolk. It never hurts to see things from another point of view, right?" I nodded and he yawned. "Well, I just got up to get a drink. I'd best be on my way or I'll forget why I got up." He laughed and I nodded.

"Thanks." I said. He nodded and walked down the hall ahead of me, turning out to go to the well. The innkeeper looked at me from his seat and I looked at him.

"Havin' a rough night?" He asked. I nodded. "Thinkin' about what you're gonna do in the morning?" I nodded again. "Well, it's none of my business what you'll do, but if I were you, I'd choose the girl that you truly feel you love. Trust your heart when the time comes, and you'll never be wrong. That's what me old man used to say." I smiled slightly. "Your room can wait for you. Take your time. This is a big decision ahead of you, and it'd only be bad if you rushed it." I nodded and walked out while he nodded.

'He's right.' I thought. 'If I trust my heart, everything should turn out okay.'

I walked around for a little while, even going to the bar, and people kept talking to me, telling me what they'd do if they were in my shoes. The answers were varied, some saying Bianca was the better choice because of how well I knew her, and some said Nera, though anyone saying things about her had varying reasons. Some said for money, some said for her beauty, and some said for the shield. One fellow even mentioned Debora, saying 'hey, better you than me pal'. Anyone else talking about her said very little about her that was good, but I just knew she wasn't really like that. Finally, after nearly an hour of walking around, I decided to talk to Nera, Bianca, and even Debora, about their thoughts and feelings. I walked up to the guest house first, figuring I'd talk to Bianca before Nera. After all, she was my best friend, and she'd be the easiest to talk to. I opened the door slowly and walked in, seeing a shadow at the top of a flight of stairs near a window. I walked up the stairs quietly and saw that it was Bianca. I walked up to her and she turned her head to look at me over her left shoulder.

"Hi Ace." She said quietly. "Couldn't sleep?" I nodded and walked around to her right. She was leaning on the window sill, probably thinking or looking at the stars. "I bet you were surprised earlier, when Nera pointed out how I felt about you." I shrugged and put my arms on the sill next to her.

"I had a hunch you did." I said. "Back in the cave, on the ship, you seemed to be forcing your smile around me whenever you talked about the rings, about me getting married to Nera." She smiled and nodded, looking up at the stars.

"You always were good at figuring people out." She said. "You knew back at Uptaten just what to say to calm me down whenever I got nervous." I nodded and smiled.

"Yeah, but back then it was easy to make people calm down." I said. "If a six year old kid that can't even read can smile in the face of danger, why can't someone older smile too?" She laughed quietly while I looked at the stars. "You remember when you asked me what was wrong, back in the cave?" She nodded. "Well, I've been thinking about this for a long time. When you offered to come with me to get the Circle of Water, I got nervous. I was completely ready to marry Nera, and then the Goddess decides to show me the way back to my best friend, and as if to torture me, She made me nervous around you." I chuckled quietly. "I like you Bianca, and I mean that. You are my best friend, and the only girl I know that isn't afraid of a few monsters." She giggled quietly. "But, when I was a kid I never had to think about things like this, about who I'd spend the rest of my life with, who I'd wake up to in the morning every day, and who I'd pledge my love to." She looked at me while I continued staring at the stars. "All the trouble I went through in my life after my dad died, I never thought I'd see you again, I never thought I'd get married. I always figured I'd find the hero, find my mom, and die alone in a fight before I ever reached the age of twenty. All this time, I never thought I'd have to choose between marrying my best friend or the daughter of Mr. Briscoletti." I looked at her and she had a worried look on her face.

"Ace, you should marry Nera." She said. "If you don't, you won't get the shield, and you might not be able to rescue your mother." I shook my head.

"Mr. Briscoletti is a good man." I said. "I know that if I asked him to keep the shield safe for me, to hold onto it until I could bring him the hero, he would. He wouldn't let anyone take it, and he'd keep it for me until I brought the hero here." She stared at me. "So the shield is out of the picture for this, for me, for you, for Nera. The shield doesn't matter. What does matter, is, well…" I blushed and she smiled weakly. "I don't know. I, I just can't figure out what my heart is trying to tell me. My heart is torn between you, my best friend, and Nera, a girl I met ten years ago in passing, and a girl I barely know."

"Do you have feelings for her?" She asked. I sighed and looked out the window again.

"I'm not sure." I said. "There is definitely something there for her, and there is something in my heart for you. I just, I can't figure out what those feelings are. Love, friendship, or who knows what, all swirling around and causing me a lot of heartache." I looked at the ground for a moment before looking at the stars. "I just, I wish there was an easier way to do this. I know I love you, but is that love the kind where I want to spend my life with you, or is it that love that wants me to stay by you as a friend?" She giggled quietly and I looked at her.

"I think that you'll know in the morning Ace." She said. "You were always smart, and you always found a way to think through anything, no matter what. You and me, we took on ghosts, monsters, and we freed the spirits of a Count and a Countess, and then we waded through a cave full of monsters to get a ring. You and me, even if what we have isn't true love, you'll always be my ghost busting, monster fighting, son of a warrior, pint sized purple prophet pal." I smiled. "We'll always be friends Milliardo, that's a promise." She held out her right hand, which I took in mine.

"Thanks Bianca." I said. "You're the best friend I've ever had, even if I wasn't there for ten years." She smiled.

"Hey, it wasn't your fault." She said. "You got kidnapped, so I'll let you off the hook." I smiled as she looked at the stars. "Tell you what. You go talk to whoever else you need to talk to, and we'll settle this whole thing in the morning." I nodded as she let go of my hand. "Even if you don't pick me, I won't hold it against you."  
…

I walked into the mansion and saw that the maids had turned in for the night. I walked around and figured the family was upstairs. I thought they wouldn't mind me walking in to do some thinking, so I went upstairs. I saw a half open door so I walked over to it and opened it slowly. I saw a shadow on the floor so I looked around the door to see Nera looking out a window at the sky. I walked in and the floor creaked. I winced and she turned to see me.

"Milliardo." She said quietly. "W-what are you, doing up so late?"

"Oh, I uh, I couldn't sleep." I said. I walked in and she put her hands together in front of her. I could barely see her, but I knew she must have been blushing. "I just, can't seem to stop thinking about, recent events. It's not easy, deciding between you and Bianca." She nodded and walked over to her bed while I watched. The moonlight was now shining on her and she looked even more beautiful in it. "I talked to her, and she still thinks I should marry you. I'd be willing to bet my turban that you still think I should marry her." She nodded and I smiled. "Well, at least I get to keep my turban." She giggled quietly as I shifted nervously. "Would you mind if I sat down?" She looked at me as she sat down on her bed.

"If, if you want." She said. I walked over slowly and grabbed a chair from the vanity and she giggled. "You can, sit next to me if you want." I set the chair beside the bed so that it was next to her.

"I will." I said. I sat on the chair and she giggled again.

"I meant on the bed." She said. I nodded.

"I know." I said. "But all this travelling, a guy gets a lot of dirt on his clothes. I'll have to dust off the chair before I leave." She giggled a bit more and I smiled. "You know, the reason I came here, at first anyway, was for the shield. I need the shield because I think it's the Zenithian Shield." She stopped smiling and I looked at the floor. "I feel like a jerk, because I came here to marry you, just so I could get that shield. I can't help but feel terrible that I was probably going to end up breaking your heart for my own reasons." I looked at her. "I really hope you can forgive me for that."

"It's okay Milliardo." She said. "I'm sure whatever the reason, it's a good one." I shrugged.

"Well, did you talk to Bianca?" I asked. She nodded. "Did she tell you about my dad, and why I'm travelling?" She nodded again. "My dad wrote me a letter ten years ago, telling me that he needed the Zenithian Equipment to find the legendary hero of light so he could find my mother. He had the sword, but somehow he knew that he wasn't going to live long enough to find the rest, so he entrusted his task to me." She nodded slowly. "So, I came here, knowing that I was more likely than not going to break your heart to save my mother. Even though I knew that, it didn't make it feel like I was any less of a jerk for what I had to do." She stared as I looked at the floor. "I don't know if I deserve to be your husband."

"Milliardo, I lived in a convent for a long time." She said. "I know that if you're truly sorry, the Goddess would forgive you, and so would I." I looked at her. "But there is nothing to forgive. Your love for your mother drives you to do what you have to do to save her from evil, and that means you are a good man, a pure hearted man." She smiled. "You must do what is right in your heart, and nothing must persuade you to do otherwise. Whether you choose me or Bianca, you must choose what you believe is right for you. If you love Bianca, marry her, but remember that it is always your choice, and you must make it." I nodded. "I know you will make the choice that is right for you, and I wish you happiness with whatever path you choose."

"Thank you Nera." I said quietly. Her words were very helpful in some ways, but my heart was still torn between her and Bianca. But she was right, as was Bianca. My heart would guide me in the morning, and I realized that dwelling on the decision would only serve to make it more difficult when the time came. "I've kept you up long enough." She blushed again. I stood up and bowed, making her blush deeper. I grabbed the chair and walked it over to the vanity and put it back, dusting it off in silence. I walked to the door and turned to bow again. "Good night." She nodded.

"Good night Milliardo." She said. "I'll see you in the morning." I smiled as I slowly closed the door.

'No matter what I do, things just get more difficult.' I thought. I stood up straight and sighed quietly. 'But, now I know that it won't do me any good thinking about this whole thing. The more I think about it, the harder it's going to get. I can't let my head get in the way of my heart.' I walked to the stairs and saw a second set. I hadn't seen any other rooms on the second floor, so I wondered if Debora had a floor all to herself. I decided against going up, since she'd probably be asleep. I took a step when a door opened to my left. I looked over quickly as Debora walked out, stretching her arms. She looked at me and I bowed politely. "Good evening Miss Debora. I was just leaving." She walked over as I stood up. I went to take a step when she put her right hand to my back. I looked at her and she looked at me silently for a few seconds.

"What are you doing here anyway?" She asked. "Having a difficult time deciding between your friend and my sister?" I nodded.

"Yes." I said. I looked at the stairs. "Or, I was anyway. After talking to Bianca and Nera, I realized that I'm thinking way too hard about it. I'm letting my head get in the way of my heart, and that's not fair to either of them." She scoffed.

"It took you that long to figure it out?" She asked. "Geeze, you spent probably half the night talking to the whole village I bet." I nodded with a small blush. "People tell you all kinds of things, but what you absolutely need to remember is that what you do is what is best for you. If you want something, you have to find a way to get it, and that way is always the way that is best for you." I nodded slowly. "When I want something, the best way to get it is by getting my dad to give me the money for it, or get him to get some guy to get it. That way, I don't have to do anything more than say a few words and go back to my day."

"If only everyone had a way as easy as that." I said. She patted my back twice and I looked at her.

"That's the way to think." She said. "You know, not a lot of guys can talk to me like you can. Most guys stare at me or babble like idiots. They can't handle someone as beautiful and as strong as me, so they just nod and agree or act like total buffoons." She smiled. "You're okay kid. You know, I always figured that it'd take a guy like you to have the guts to marry a woman like me. It's so obvious that I'm too much for just any regular guy to handle, and so many regular guys are intimidated by a woman who's willing to speak her mind."

"Well, the guys in the village seem to realize that." I said. "Though I think they're not so enlightened as to why they don't think they could handle being married to you. They don't really understand you." She smiled and patted my back again.

"That's what I like about you." She said. "You agree, but you have your own reasons. You're not just agreeing because you're scared of me. And you're right, they don't understand me." She looked around for a moment and looked at me seriously. "You know, I bet you see through all kinds of things. I bet you can read people like a book just by watching them. You could probably get into someone's head just by talking to them, and you could figure them out if you had a few minutes to get to know them." I nodded. "Use that talent 'Ace', and use it to get what you really want. Read people and use what you learn to make them willingly give you what you want from them." She patted my back again and walked past me. "Now get going to wherever it was you were going." She walked up to the stairs leading up and climbed the first two. She looked at me for a moment, but I could barely see her face. What I could see was a worried expression, like she realized something from her own words. She was right. I knew how to read people, and I learned things about her she probably didn't realize she was letting me learn. Her expression changed back to the one she probably used for everyone else. "Well, get going. This isn't an open house. Come back in the morning and make your choice." I nodded and walked over to the stairs leading down, but I looked up at her. "What?"

"Good night Miss Debora." I said. "And thank you." I turned and walked when I heard her scoff. She walked down the stairs after me and stopped me a few feet from the bottom step. She put her right hand on my left shoulder and I turned to look at her.

"Look, not that I really care, but what are you thanking me for?" She asked. "Don't get the wrong idea or anything, like I care, because I really don't, but why are you thanking me?"

"I'm thanking you for our talk." I said. She stared and I shrugged my right shoulder so I wouldn't move her hand. "You've given me a lot to think about, and I think I've got a better grasp on a few things I hadn't really thought about before." She let go of me and turned around slowly.

"Fine, you're welcome for, whatever." She said. I noticed that she was trying, and failing, to hide a bit of joy. She seemed to be a little happier as she walked up the steps. I turned and walked out of the house.

'Well, all three girls helped me, but not in the way I had wanted.' I thought. 'At least I'll sleep a bit better now. I just have to trust my heart to make the right decision when the time comes in the morning.' I walked down the street to the inn, walking in and to my room after thanking the innkeeper. I sat on the bed and moved under the covers and sighed. 'Two girls, two choices, and I can only wonder about Debora.' I closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep.  
…

I walked into the mansion and the maid greeted me, telling me to go into the main room and that Mr. Briscoletti and the girls were waiting. When I walked in I found that even Debora was among them. They were all looking at Debora as she spoke to her father.

"Dad, I know what young men like these days." She said. "You've fallen out of touch. Milliardo would probably much rather have a strong woman like me instead of meek little Nera or his old friend Bianca. I just know how he thinks." I walked in silently but they all looked at me. "Ah, here he is. My future husband, all ready to pick me." She smiled as Nera and Bianca exchanged worried looks. Mr. Briscoletti seemed about ready cry in frustration. "So hurry up Ace, pick me and we'll be a happy couple in a few short days."

"Debora, let poor Milliardo speak for himself, please." He said. "He's been thinking a lot about this no doubt, so let's let him decide." I walked over as the girls stood together. Debora stood on the left with her arms crossed, looking smug. Nera stood in the middle, blushing and looking worried. Bianca stood on the right, looking nervous, but she still smiled. "You have made your decision Milliardo?" He walked around and looked tired, like he hadn't slept all night. I nodded.

"I have." I said. I looked at the girls in turn. "I spent part of the morning thinking about each of you, and I realized that each of you deserves someone special, and the fact that you're all willing to allow me this chance makes me a lucky man. Most men spend their whole lives looking for that one special person that makes them feel complete, and they never find anyone like that." They all looked at each other. "After a lot of thought, I realized something else, and I know that one of you makes me feel like I've found the love that so many dismiss as the stuff of fairy tales and romantic nonsense." I walked up to the girls and they all blushed, even Debora. I stopped a few feet from them. I looked at each of them in turn before looking at the one I truly loved with a warm, caring smile. "I know in my heart, that I truly love, you." I held my right hand out and she blushed deeper.


End file.
